The Pakistan Textile Exporters Association (PTEA) has appreciated the government decision to restore gas supply to the energy-starved textile sector in Punjab and saved jobs of millions of blue collar employees. This would help revive the idle manufacturing capacity and boost exports. However; they demanded to increase the gas quota for processing and hosiery industry to 33 percent and for spinning and captive power to 8 hours per day.
Speaking at a joint press conference at the Pakistan Textile Exporters Association here on Wednesday, PTEA Chairman Sohail Pasha thanked the government on restoring gas supply to export-oriented textile industry in the province. This move would further raise the business community's confidence in government policies. They appreciated the role of Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif in putting forward the case of the Punjab-based textile industry to the federal government. The Punjab Chief Minister promised to textile exporters, in a meeting few days earlier, to take every possible measure to ensure supply of gas to the textile industry so that it could take full advantage of the market access to the EU under the GSP Plus scheme, they explained. EU trade concessions have boosted Pakistan's exports to Europe by over $1 billion in one year and have created extra jobs as textile manufacturers have expanded the existing capacity and set up new projects.
Praising the decision of the government, PTEA Chairman Sohail Pasha said that each and every worker of the textile industry was acknowledging the support given by the Prime Minister and the Chief Minister of Punjab. The Punjab-based textile industry was left with no option but to lay off workers due to suspension of gas supply. He said the uninterrupted gas supply would help increase textile exports every month. This huge inflow of foreign exchange would further strengthen the economy and reduce trade gap.
He termed energy shortage the main hurdle in industrial progress. He urged the government to prioritise uninterrupted energy supply to the textile industry to secure 15 million jobs and $14 billion exports. Energy shortage has put the industry on back gear and has adversely affected textile production mainly meant for exports, as major part of its capacity potential remained non-operative. Focus on development and infrastructure should be the prime responsibility of the government and uninterrupted energy to industry needs to be ensured throughout the year, he added. Textile exporters are optimistic that the energy crisis will be resolved on priority basis.