DTRE scheme restored for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan ghee makers: Hub, Hattar units excluded

The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has restored DTRE scheme for ghee manufacturers-cum-exporters in Khyber Pukhtunkhawa and Balochistan, but excluded Hattar and Hub from the facility, putting the industrial units in these two areas at a disadvantage against the rest of the industry in the country.
An FBR notification, dated December 13, said: "DTRE facility shall be allowed to the ghee manufacturers-cum-exporters of only those units which are located in Khyber Pukhtunkhawa and Balochistan excluding the areas of Hattar and Hub". The notification said the DTRE facility shall be subject to provision of average exports made by the manufacturers-cum-exporters of ghee during the last four years plus enhancement of 20 percent.
It further said that DTRE shall be available to the exporters on industrial track record and performance basis. The time limit shall be 90 days for utilising the imported palm oil and this period shall be counted from the date of import general manifest (IGM) to export date of consignment.
Industry sources said that excluding Hattar and Hub from DTRE scheme is going to turn the facility into a negative factor instead of making it a useful tool to promote export of ghee to neighbouring countries for two reasons: one)- by putting major ghee manufacturers-cum-exporters at sheer disadvantage; and the second- for giving undue favour to those exporters who do not have the capacity to produce more and export to Afghanistan and other neighbouring countries.
Industry sources said that restoration of DRTE scheme for some areas and excluding others is a conspiracy to divide the ghee industry units and use the facility as a tool to discourage major exporters of ghee to Afghanistan and other neighbouring countries. They say that by restoring DTRE facility for selected areas, the FBR has actually set a stage for Pakistani manufacturers-cum-exporters to lose Afghanistan and other neighbouring countries' market to other competitors like Iran and some Gulf countries.
Historically, Afghanistan has been a promising market for Pakistan to export ghee and cooking oil. Since Hattar in Khyber Pukhtunkhawa and Hub in Balochistan have strategic advantage, being close to Afghan boarder, manufacturers-cum-exporters selected had these areas for setting up their ghee manufacturing units and take benefit of location for export of ghee to Afghanistan. Now, when the FBR has taken a new decision of restoring DTRE scheme for two provinces, excluding Hattar and Hub, these areas' advantage has been turned into a disadvantage. The owners of the ghee units in Hattar are worried about the future of their industries. "We can not run our industrial units in a situation wherein some ghee manufacturers-cum-exporters have a facility and other not. This is totally unfair decision on the part of FBR, and industry will use every available forum to get this decision reversed," a Hattar-based ghee manufacturer said.
The government had extended DTRE scheme to the entire ghee manufacturers-cum-exporters industry in 2001, and then discontinued the facility for this sector in 2004. Since disconnection, the ghee industry's representatives were demanding of the government to restore this facility to the ghee industry so that it could enhance ghee export to Afghanistan and other neighbouring countries. Now the facility has been restored but exclusion of Hattar and Hub from it sent a negative message to the exporters instead of bringing them some good news.