The President of Sialkot Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI), Abdul Waheed Sandal, said here on Wednesday that SCCI was considering to establish 'Soccer Ball Village' in Sialkot, with the support and co-operation of federal and provincial governments.
Talking to Business Recorder, he said that the proposed village would be spread over 100 acres where stitching centres would be set up and contractors would be asked to shift their stitchers to the village.
Sialkot is catering 85 percent of the total world demand of hand stitched inflatable balls which are translated into around 40 million balls annually worth $210 million, while about 200,000 workers are engaged, either directly or indirectly, in the industry, he said.
He said that the federal and provincial governments had assured of full co-operation and assistance in setting up the soccer ball village here. The basic facilities like clinic, day care centre, utility store, pick and drop facility and hygienic drinking water facilities would be ensured in the proposed village, whereas there would be separate arrangements for male and female stitchers in the village, he added.
The SCCI president highly appreciated the federal government for initiating projects like sports industry development centre and product development centre for composite based material costing Rs 715 million.