APTMA responds to observations made by NA Standing Committee on Commerce

RECORDER REPORT

LAHORE: All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) has issued clarification on the observations made by the honourable National Assembly’s Standing on Commerce in its meeting held on October 04 in Islamabad.

According to the spokesman, the APTMA has always been guarding the interests of all the backward and forward linkages of textile industry, including growers and value added exporters from day one.

He said the APTMA contested strongly the case of cotton growers by advocating for the implementation of Free Market Mechanism in the cotton trade two years back. Only this single step on the part of APTMA has triggered growth in the cotton production due to transfer of Rs. 400 billion to the cotton farm sector.

He has also appreciated the support of the Ministry of’ Textile Industry in putting in place the mechanism of Free Market Mechanism leading to record 16 million bales this year that has made Pakistan self-sufficient in cotton production. He said the cotton farmers are getting international price for their cotton due to this policy and all credit goes to the Ministry of Textile Industry.

Therefore, APTMA strongly dispels the impression of fleecing the growers by the textile industry, saying that it has never and would never support this approach keeping in view the larger interest of the textile industry.

He further pointed out that a major part of the initiatives under the Federal Textile Policy 2009 have not been implemented yet despite the passage of almost three years. It is only the Technology Up-gradation Fund (TUF) scheme that is announced recently to provide investment and interest rate support to the industry. Otherwise, he said, a large list of initiatives including zero rating of exports, rationalization of tariff structure, 1 percent drawback on local sales of yarn and fabrics and to provide top priority in gas and electricity load management have not been materialized so far. Consequently, he said that some 30 percent capacity of the textile industry has become impaired today.

The APTMA spokesman has demanded the Chairman of the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Commerce to hear the APTMA leadership in the next meeting of the Committee to understand the actual situation on ground and develop harmony of ideas and thoughts on sustainability and growth of textile industry in Pakistan. According to him, the government has not implemented even 10 percent of the Textile Policy, worth Rs. 42 billion, so far and many important decisions are still pending due to paucity of funds despite the fact that the textile ministry’s share in exports is around 60 percent in total exports of the country.

He said the APTMA wishes a strong growth in overall exports of the country and suggests proportionate allocation of funds on the basis of contribution of each segment to the exports.