LAHORE: Terming a sharp decline of 17 billion dollar in current account deficit a big achievement of the government, Governor Punjab Ch Muhammad Sarwar on Monday predicted economic revival very soon.
Elaborating his point, the Governor said that when they took power two years back the current account deficit was as high as $20 billion which has now been reduced to $3 billion. He was speaking with a delegation of the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry led by President Mian Tariq Misbah.
Debt payment issues, he said, was a big task to be fulfilled and we have also managed it although the economic indicators and the stock market was running very low. He said COVID-19 has even shacked the most powerful economies of the world but we, under the leadership of PM Imran khan, have faced it and have managed to control it very early.
Speaking about the curtailment of pandemic, the governor said we took it seriously and we have controlled it. Now that the second wave is quickly engulfing the world, we need to be more cautious and prepared by using masks and making sure the social distancing. He said the construction policy by the government has proved to be very helpful as the sector and the related sectors with construction industry are going up. The interest rates are very low which are contributing to the economic growth of the country.
Speaking about the inflation and high prices, he said "we understand the miseries of the people and we do know that prices of edibles are going up very rapidly. We can control it with good governance and I am sure that we will deal with this issue as quickly as possible."
The wheat price is going up because we are importing the wheat on Rs. 2600 per 40/kg. If we, the governor added, facilitate our growers and pay them around Rs. 1800 per 40/kg, we will easily motivate them to produce more. This is the case with cotton and other crops and the present government is ready and focusing on agriculture sector more than ever.
He emphasized on the need of research in agriculture, saying that the research is very costly and our seeds quality is not competing with the developed economies. The investment in research is the key to increase production and crop quality.
President LCCI Mian Tariq Misbah said the provincial governments of KPK, Sindh and Balochistan have waived tax on pilgrims for Hajj and Umrah, whereas, the government of Punjab has yet to announce such tax exemption. He said the officials of customs intelligence unduly stop trucks outside and within city limits for examination which are carrying imported goods after clearance. This practice should be stopped as it is causing undue problems. The encroachments have plagued the commercial areas of Lahore. These areas should be made free of encroachments as it is in some way adding to the cost of doing business.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2020
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