Pakistan Association of Automotive Parts & Accessories Manufacturers (Paapam) has strongly reacted to the government decision to abolish negative trade list with India by year end before providing level playing field to the Pakistani manufacturers who are hit by prolonged electricity shutdowns, gas interruptions and skyrocketing energy tariffs.
Talking to Business Recorder here on Thursday, Paapam Chairman Nabeel Hashmi said the government had dropped a bomb shell on the domestic industry by charging Fuel Adjustment Surcharges by over Rs 3 per unit for the month of August 2011.
Hashmi said the Ministry of Industry had admitted that Pakistan's domestic industry was in a gross comparative disadvantage position in terms of energy and access to credit. "Numerous industrial zones in India offer concessions to promote the industry while in Pakistan there are frequent and prolonged energy outages, and the production capacities remain unutilised across the board increasing the production costs for the majority of those SMEs who do not have resources to set up captive plants."
Paapam Chairman said India should not be allowed to use Pakistan as a dumping ground for its cheap and substandard goods. The phasing out should be linked to proportionate measures by India towards reduction of non-tariff barriers (NTBs). In case India fails to remove the trade barriers, then negative list should not be abolished.
He said Pakistani manufacturers could benefit through import of raw material from India to cut down on input costs. However the government should not immediately allow import of chemicals, paper, footwear iron and steel, auto sector, electronics, cutlery, sports, surgical, furniture, pharmaceutical etc to protect the local industries and jobs of millions of people.
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