Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) has rejected unannounced massive power load shedding, saying that 16 to 18 hours long power load shedding has brought business activities into halt in the province. In a statement here on Wednesday, President, SCCI, Usman Bashir Bilour termed the scheduled and unscheduled load shedding as economic murder of the people of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. He said that through massive unannounced load shedding the people have been pushed back to stone era.
He demanded of the Pepco authorities for immediate stoppage of the unscheduled load shedding to ensure smooth and uninterrupted power supply to industrial and trading activities in the shopping centres. Usman Bashir Bilour urged management of both Pepco and Pesco to announce abolition of the unscheduled load shedding in taking into consideration the problems of general public and business community.
The SCCI chief said that the economy of country was already affected due to terrorism and the remaining deficiency was filled by the unjustified massive load shedding. He demanded of the federal government to direct immediately Peshawar Electricity Supply Company (Pesco) to avoid unannounced power load shedding in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Meanwhile, president, Tanzim-e-Tajiran, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sharafat Ali Mubarak, general secretary, Shaukat Ali Khan, Haji Mohammad Afzal and Waris Khan Afridi have rejected increase in the ratio of withholding tax on the withdrawal of cash from banks.
They rejected increase in the ratio of the withdrawal of an amount of Rs 25,000 from 0.3 percent to 0.5 percent and warned the government that in case of any increase in the withholding tax, the trading community would stop business with the commercial banks. They said that they have already opposed the levy of withholding tax on cheque encashment, saying except Pakistan there is no precedent of the levy of such tax in any country of the world.