All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) is observing a ''black day'' and strike from Karachi to Peshawar on today. Although chairman APTMA has claimed that value-added textile sector is also participating in the strike, some leading value-added textile associations including Pakistan Apparel Forum and Pakistan Readymade Garments Manufacturers and Exporters Association have refused to be a part of this protest.
Talking to Business Recorder, Tariq Saud Chairman APTMA said that with a major share in the country''s textile exports, all APTMA members are on board and will participate in the strike. "This strike is announced by APTMA on common issues of textile industry without support of any other textile association, however major textile industries including value added sector are in touch and participating in the protest," he claimed.
He said Pakistan Textile Export Association (Faisalabad), Punjab Chamber of Commerce and other several associations have also announced that they will support today''s protest. Leading value added industry players will also observe black day as announced by APTMA, he added. Chairman APTMA said APTMA members across the country will shut their mills from 9 am to 5 pm and a mega protest will be held in the Landhi industrial area, Karachi where hundreds of textile workers will protest against the unrealistic government policies.
"We are not only raising voice for the spinning sector, but for the entire textile sector, which is unable to compete in the world market due to high cost of production followed by higher utility tariff," he maintained. On the other hand, opposing the suggestion of regulatory duty on import of yarn, Javed Bilwani, Chairman Pakistan Chairman Pakistan Apparel Forum, said that value added textile sector will not participate in the black day.
"Although some issues raised by APTMA are common, however we are not in favour of strike or black day and will continue our operations today," he added. He said APTMA has always raised voice for free market mechanism and now it is opposing it as the domestic textile industry is getting cheap yarn from the neighbouring countries. Bilwani said yarn is a basic raw material of the textile sector and it should be duty-free to reduce the cost of doing business of the textile sector. "The country''s textile export is already on decline and imposition of any new duty will raise the cost of finished textile products, resulting in further decline in textile exports," he added.
He said due to stiff competition in the world market the domestic industry is working less than installed capacity and in this situation any strike will hurt the export production, therefore the value added textile sector will not participate in the strike. Ijaz Khokhar of Pakistan Readymade Garments Manufacturers and Exporters Association (PRGMEA) said value added textile sector supports the issues like utility tariff and high cost of production, however not in favour of strike that is for the imposition of duty on the yarn import from neighbouring country.
He said the domestic textile sector''s cost of production is higher than regional competitors and value added sector is already facing difficulties in competing with the world market. Therefore, we believed that imposition of any new duty on yarn will directly hurt the export oriented value added textile sector. Khokhar urged the federal government to ensure a level playing flied for all textile players to let the domestic industry grow genuinely. "Textile industry will close if the federal government fails to take preventive measures to reduce the cost of production," he said and added that closure of the industry will increase unemployment in the country, therefore the government should continue the status of free-market mechanism.
Meanwhile, addressing a hurriedly-called press conference Tuesday evening, All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) Punjab Chairman Aamir Fayyaz said that the textile industry has become unviable due to high cost of doing business as well as unbridled entry of regional textile products from the regional competitors. "The overall exports of the country have declined by 21 percent in September 2015 against the corresponding period. There is a reduction of $443 million in one month, which suggests the alarming situation of the industry," he added.
He said the textile industry is mainstay of Pakistan economy providing employment to 60 percent of the labourer and utilising cotton produced in the country has unanimously decided to close down mills and mark October 14, Wednesday as black day in the chequered history of textile industry. He said all the textile mills, right from Karachi to Khyber Pakhtunkhawa, would remain their operations closed. "Members of the Association would wear black bands on their arms to mark the black day and display protest banners outside their mills carrying slogans for immediate restoration the viability of textile industry. All textile mills of all sectors and sub-sectors would show their unity and participate in the black day protest as all are feeling the pinch of inviability," he asserted.
He said the textile industry couldn''t sustain the system inefficiencies and theft on the energy front. "We want regionally competitive electricity and gas availability without interruption," he added. Furthermore, he said, the textile industry would also lodge protest on the unchecked entry of yarn, fabrics and other textile products, especially from India. "This entry was a major cause of unemployment in Pakistan," he lamented. Chairman APTMA Punjab has urged the government economic managers to take immediate steps for restoration of viability of the textile industry.
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