PESHAWAR: The result-oriented measures taken by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Economic Zones Development and Management Company (KP-EZDMC) has put the industrial sector of the province on track of industrialization as 500 new industrial units have been established with an investment of Rs.450 billion during the period of last four years.
Talking to Business Recorder, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) KP-EZDMC Javed Iqbal Khattak said these newly established factories in the economic zones have created employment opportunity for thousands of people while 350 more industrial units are under construction in various economic zones. Similarly, he said that work on Daraban Economic Zone, Buner Marble City and Karak Salt and Gypsum City will also begin this year.
He said that he has also recently held a meeting with the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) KP Transmission & Grid Company (KPT&GC) Mohammad Ayub and discussed to formulate plan to provide cheap hydel power to economic zones in the province and attract maximum domestic and foreign investors.
He termed the news circulating in the social media regarding the affairs of the company as baseless and said that behind the malicious propaganda is the hand of a specific group which wants to harm the ongoing industrial development in the province.
Javed Khattak said that the Pakistan Hunting and Sporting Arms Development (PHSADC) was a subsidiary of the federal government, which had been inactive for many years, so the big decision to merge this company with KP EZDMC was taken at the level of the federal and provincial government level. He said that the company was handed over to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by the federal government after its approval by the cabinet, saying if any of his relative was employed by the Hunting and Sporting Arms Company, then he as the CEO of KP-EZDMC had no authority to merge a federal government entity into his company.
He termed impression that Hunting and Sporting Arms Company is a financial burden on the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government saying the liabilities of the PHSADC is merely amounting to Rs.40 million as compare to its assets of worth 90 million rupees. The merger of the both companies has saved hundreds of small hunting and sports arms manufacturing factories and their workers from rendering unemployed. Some companies, he said are manufacturing export-oriented goods, which earns precious foreign exchange for the country.
To a question about extension granted to him as Chief Executive Officer, he said that was appointed as CEO KP-EZDMC after a formal test and interview as per rules and regulations followed by its approval from the provincial cabinet. He said that the contract of his service has been extended for another period of three years on the basis of his excellent performance.
He said that during first tenure as Chief Executive Officer, 9 industrial zones have been established in different places of the province and except an initial capital of one billion rupees provided by the provincial government the company has generated funds to the tone of Rs.10 billion by its own.
Out of the total generated amount of Rs.10 billion, 7 billion rupees have been spent on development of industrial zones while the remaining Rs3 billion is secured capital from which the company is getting a reasonable profit.
To a question regarding the Board of Directors (BoD) of the company, he said that beside three administrative secretaries, it also includes industrialists.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024
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