Members of Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry and traders community have announced to launch protestation from November 1 against the load shedding of electricity and gas, and strongly demanded that gas shedding schedule should be implemented across the board in the country.
Addressing the protest meeting at FCCI here on Saturday, speakers said that gas suspension plan for three days would have a very negative impact on the entire industrial sector that was already passing through very challenging times due to acute shortage of electricity and gas, bad law and order situation due to growing unemployment in the country.
Abdul Qayyum, President of FCCI, said that not only national exports and productions would nosedive but the graph of unemployment would also go up as a large number of industrial units would be left with no other option but to close down their operations if gas suspension plan is not shelved. How the industrial sector would be able to manage export orders worth millions of dollars when there is no gas, while gas authorities do not bother about the pain of business community, he added.
He said that thousands of daily wagers, who have a single source of income for their family, are becoming totally jobless, and how the government would convince the local and foreign investors for investment in the country when most of the upcountry industrial sector is unable to manage the supply of gas to existing industrial units.
Abdul Qayyum strongly demanded that gas load shedding schedule should be distributed across the board to curtail the difficulties of the industrialists. Shabbir Hussain Chawala, vice president, Javed Iqbal, Aftab Ahmad, Hamid Javaid, Muhammad Khalid Habib, former presidents of FCCI Farhan Latif, Director Chenab Limited Ajmal Farooq, former regional chairman of All Pakistan Textile Processing Mills Association Shahid Razzaq Sikka, President of Anjuman-e-Tajran Faisalabad City Talib Hussain, senior vice president of Pakistan Sizing Industries Association and Muhammad Afzal Tarar, General Secretary of Faisalabad Foundries Association said that it seemed that some elements in the gas and government departments were hatching conspiracies against the government, especially Punjab, to defame industrial activities that otherwise was doing a lot for the economic revival of the country. They pointed out that they were unable to understand why the business community was not taken into confidence over industry-related issues and if the SNGPL was facing some supply related issues they must bring them to the notice of real stakeholders well ahead of time. The Sui Northern Company had issued a gas load shedding schedule, under which the gas supply to value-added textile processing, printing and sizing units will remain suspended for 6 days and it would be restored on November 4.
They pointed out that prolonged gas shedding is being done on the pretext that the Zamzama turnaround will remain closed for 65 days. He said that it was not feasible to run these industries on other fuel. He added that when the Sui Northern Company had previously closed the Qadir Pur turnaround, it resumed the gas supply to industry on interference of Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani. He added that the company could accomplish the Zamzama turnaround during ensuing Eid holidays, without disturbing the gas supply to industry.
Talking to newsmen, Wasim Latif, chairman of Pakistan Textile Exporters Association (PTEA), said that the government should chalk out a comprehensive policy for boosting the industrial production and augmentation of the textile exports. He said that the government has acquired a loan of 1.5 billion dollars from IMF on harsh terms and payment of heavy mark-up but the textile sector which is indeed the backbone of Pakistan's economy and was earning direly needed foreign exchange of $10 billion a year without receiving any concession from the government despite almost double prices of the raw material, electricity and gas rates.
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