All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) Senior Vice Chairman Shahid Mazhar Puri has criticised the Ministry of Textile Industry for protecting the Indian textile products in Pakistan. "This is my personal view and being the senior Vice Chairman APTMA that the Ministry of Textile Industry was protecting the Indian textile products ruining the local industry," he added.
He was addressing to media on Monday where the APTMA Punjab Chairman has announced to observe October 14 as 'black day' over the undue delay in the Prime Minister package for textile industry. He said it took APTMA five months to approach the prime minister but still no relief has been provided to the industry till date. The APTMA Faisalabad chairman Umar Nazar Shah said some 4,000 power looms have turned into scrap because of the delay in the textile package. "Pakistan's textile industry has become unviable in the region against Indian industry, which is dumping yarn in domestic market."
He said he has suspended operations of one of his mills and laid some 700 workers due to the non-viability. He said the textile industry would lose $200 million in a day when the APTMA would observe October 14 as a 'black day'. Senior Vice Chairman APTMA Punjab Syed Ali Ahsan said the closure of spinning mills would have domino effect, as it would also affect the working of weaving, processing and value-added mills as well.