PESHAWAR: Chairman Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Textile Mills Association (KPTMA), Salim Saifullah Khan has urged the Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan to intervene and withdraw the decision of Cabinet Committee on Energy regarding discontinuation of natural gas supply to captive power generation for general industry from 1st February and the Export Oriented Sectors from 1st March 2021.
In a statement issued here Saturday, Salim Saifullah Khan said that the entire textile industries of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is in a state of shock after learning this news item published in section of print media today. He said that such news and decisions of the Federal Government would sabotage the efforts and vision of Imran Khan, the Prime Minister of Pakistan for industrialization and boosting exports. He further said that the exporters have worked hard and achieve export orders for the year 2021. Such policies will put a deadly blow on the exports, foreign exchange earnings and the most labour intensive sector which has provided employment to over 46 percent of the labour force engaged in the manufacturing sector.
He further said that this news on one hand is hanging deadly sword on the industries while our regional competitors are very much happy that their orders shifted to Pakistan will be re-shifted to their respective countries. He further added that as most of the industries especially Textile Industry and E cottage industry is running on natural gas using boilers and regeneration system so it is impossible to be converted on the grid and change the whole appliances within one month. It seems that government due to the reasons best known to them is killing KP only industries which employees 40,000 direct employment and more than 0.5 million indirect employment. The government takes decisions without the consultation of local industry and they themselves do not use the technical and the financial impact on the local and import oriented industry so this decision is strongly condemned.
The Chairman KPTMA further said that the Peshawar High Court in its judgment has ordered the Federal and Provincial Government to adhere to the provisions of Article 158 of the Constitution of Pakistan quoted that “priority of requirements of natural gas – The province in which well head of natural gas in situated shall have precedence over other parts of Pakistan in meeting the requirements from the well-head, subject to the commitments and obligations as on the commencing day.” He urged the Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan to intervene and address the aforesaid matter in amicable manner in the larger interest of the country and to save the textile industry and export for the betterment of Pakistan.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021
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