ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) has urged the federal government to take business community of the capital on board prior to commencing implementation of the energy conservation plan.

Chairing a meeting of the chamber’s Traders Committee, ICCI President Ahsan Zafar Bakhtawari said that the government wants to conserve energy, which is good. However, he called upon the government to take a final decision on the business timings in consultation with traders, who are the real stakeholders in the matter.

He said that the country’s economy is in a very bad shape at the moment due to which business activities are shrinking. Owing to the dollar crisis, the business community is facing serious difficulties in importing raw materials and goods.

He said that the business timings should be finalised in consultation with the chambers of commerce, trade associations and businessmen in general so that with a unanimous decision, energy can be saved and business activities can also be protected from further damage.

The meeting passed a resolution unanimously that urged the government to take the chambers of commerce and trade associations into confidence before taking any decision on business hours.

Group Leader Khalid Iqbal Malik said that due to the shortage of dollars, the country’s imports have almost come to a halt; as a result, large industrial units are closing down. In such a situation, the government should avoid taking unilateral decisions and try to formulate a comprehensive strategy on an emergency basis to revive the economy in consultation with all the stakeholders.

He suggested that a big convention of traders of the federal capital be convened to prepare consensus proposals for presentation to the government for the revival of business activities.

Convener of Traders Committee and former senior vice president of ICCI Khalid Chaudhry said that traders use the most expensive electricity during the evening peak hours. He said that the government wants to save energy, but its revenue from electricity bills may decrease due to reduction in power consumption during the peak hours.

He exhorted the government to focus on finding an amicable solution to this problem by holding talks with all the stakeholders and avoiding imposing unilateral decisions.

The ICCI’s former senior vice president Jamshaid Akhtar Sheikh, Restaurant Association’s President Khurram Khan, President of Jinnah Super Market Asad Aziz, Secretary General Abdul Rehman Siddiqui, E-11 Market’s President Zahir Abbasi, Abpara Market’s Secretary General Akhtar Abbasi, I-8 Market’s Secretary General Zahid Qureshi, and representatives of various other markets also spoke on the occasion and demanded of the government to take a final decision in consultation with the stakeholders to serve the business and economic interests of the country.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022