Chairman All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) Mohsin Aziz said on Saturday that textile industry should be exempted from gas load shedding in the larger interest of national economy. Reacting to the Economic Co-ordination Committee (ECC) decision of continuing with three days a week gas curtailment for textile industry, Chairman APTMA said gas curtailment for textile industry is already inhibiting its export target and growth potential.
According to him, the textile industry has employed 15 million workers and it had achieved exports of $14 billion during 2010-11 and it is intending to take it to $20 billion during current fiscal year. Mohsin said 80 percent of textile industry is dependent on gas-based Captive Power Plants.
He said the country needs an immediate push to exports in a situation where trade deficit has crossed over 30 percent. This trade deficit could only be overcome through increase in textile exports. Chairman APTMA said the textile industry is already facing financial crunch, leading to bankruptcies in the industry. A gas load shedding for three days for textile industry is fatal to the growth of industry as well as exports from the country, he added.
Mohsin said the textile industry has already been deprived of gas for 120 days during the ongoing calendar year. He said the ECC should review its decision and announce exemption from gas load shedding for textile industry without delay. If it is not possible immediately, he added, then the government should reduce gas load shedding for textile industry from three days to two days a week to strengthen its potential of achieving the target of $20 billion exports and keep the jobs of 15 million employees intact in the country.