Textiles Industry Minister Mushtaq Ali Cheema has said the textile policy will be announced before the next budget, which will cover the whole chain right from raw cotton to value addition.
Talking to newsmen after being briefed about the pace of work on Lahore Garment City Company, a project of textiles ministers and Sunder Industrial Estate here on Friday, the minister said the new textile policy would focus on better returns to growers and ginners by checking contamination and increasing exports through value addition.
To a question regarding GSP Plus status for Pakistan, he said, Pakistan qualify for this status as devastation wrought by October 8 earthquake was greater than tsunami and some countries were given GSP status after tsunami. If Pakistan got this status, exports from the country would increase considerably, he added.
Regarding less than targeted cotton production in the country, he said: "It would be sufficient to meet country's requirement as buffer stock of last year would also be available."
However, he said: "Every year we have to import long staple cotton and this year, too, we would import around two million bales."
To a question about Sundar Industrial Estate, he said it is the first project (industrial estate) which would have modern infrastructure with due emphasis on meeting environment concerns.
Earlier, briefing the minister about Sundar Industrial Estate, Punjab Industrial Estate chairman Mohsin Syed said 30 percent work on roads and sewerage has been completed.
He said the industrial estate would have facilities of electricity, telephone, gas and effluent treatment plant. To ensure sustained and interruption-free supply of power to industrial units, he said, the estate would have its own power plant of 223 mega watt.
Mohsin Syed told the minister total investment in the estate would be to the tune of Rs 30 billion with 70,000 people to be provided direct employment and around 600,000 indirect job.
He said the estimated power requirement of Sundar Industrial Estate is 150mw and surplus 75mw would be sold. He said as the special emphasis is on promotion of small and medium enterprises, majority of 327 plots is of one acre while there are 105 plots of two acres and only one plot of 20 acres.
He said effluent treatment plant would be spread over 20 acres of land while the power plant would be spread over 30 acres of land.
He said the estate is a good example of public-private partnership with a 24-member board of directors, including 19 from the private sector.
About pace of work on Lahore Garment City project, a pilot project of textiles ministry, spread of 109.3 acres in the Sundar Industrial Estate, the minister was told its roads would be completed by February 25, water supply/sewerage by March 31, electricity by April 15, telephone/gas by May 15.