The business community has rejected the recent increase in the petroleum prices and demanded of the government to withdraw Rs 4.15 and Rs 1.51 per litre increase in petroleum and diesel prices respectively as the bulk increase is bound to shatter all segments of society including industrialists and traders.
PIAF office bearers; Chairman, Sohail Lashari, Senior Vice Chairman, Nadar Kamal Osman, Vice Chairman, Junaid Iqbal Sheikh and Chairman of Auto Parts Manufacturers and Exporters Association, Tahir Javed Malik strongly reacted on this anti-industry and masses decision. They said that government did not bother to pass on the benefit of decrease of oil prices in international market and earned billion of rupees, which is a sheer injustice with people, and now made a huge raise in the petroleum prices. They revealed that there is almost no production in the industrial estates due to massive load-shedding and recent increase in petroleum and diesel prices would give a big blow, not only to the industry, but also to the agriculture sector that is the backbone of the economy. They said that industrialists, traders and common men are already annoyed due to dozens of hours' load-shedding while increase in petroleum prices would add fuel to the fire.
The office bearers suggested that government should cut down its luxurious expenditures and curtail taxes and duties on petroleum products. They said that PIAF had been calling on the concerned government circles for the last many months to take measures for promotion of alternate fuels as trade deficit was fast widening due to heavy imports under the head of petroleum products. They further said that the timeline for the increase in the prices of petroleum products is also raising questions. At a time when the whole industry is suffering due to energy crisis and high cost of doing business, raise in POL prices is bound to give a further blow to the industry.
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