KARACHI: S M Muneer, patron of the United Business Group, has said that the business community will not tolerate any criticism aimed at maligning the image of our brave soldiers who are the real savior of our country.

He was speaking at the annual dinner of the Korangi Association of Trade and Industry (KATI).

S M Muneer applauded the role of the Armed Forces and paid tribute to their sacrifices for country's security and prosperity.

He said, "We, the business community, have met the Chief of the Army Staff, General Qamar Javed Bajwa, thrice and found him concerned over the economy. He always gives great importance and understands the views and suggestions of the business community." S M Muneer said that low agricultural production and drastic cut in cotton yield was a matter of great concern, and that the provincial and

federal governments should take measures to face this challenge.

He said that the business group was thankful to Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah for allocating funds for the development of the Korangi industrial area.

Sindh Education and Labour Minister Saeed Ghani said that the provincial government understood the significance of the industry for the prosperity of the province and that of the country, and that was the reason Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah had made extraordinary efforts for the development of the infrastructure of industrial area.

He said that price hike was directly related to the financial and monetary policies of the federal government.

"If all of a sudden Rs25 are raised in petroleum prices, how can the province manage the deluge of price hike in the markets?" he asked.

Ghani said that the Sindh government would start work on three combined effluent treatment plants as well as the Malir expressway very soon.

He told the audience that the Sindh government had been reviewing the labour laws to address the concerns of the industrialists and other stakeholders while a plan to bring three social security institutions (the SESSI, the Labour Walfare Board and the EOBI) under one law was underway.

The minister said that an agreement with NADRA had been signed to introduce "Smart Mazdoor Card" for the social security of the workers.

The President of KATI, Saleem-uz-Zaman, said that labour laws should be revised.

He said that five combined effluent treatment plants had been approved for Korangi long time back, and now the cost of this project had gone over Rs22 billion.

He said that the KWSB had been made responsible for the project, but it had now been proved that the water board did not have the capacity to complete this highly important task.

KITE CEO Zubair Chhaya said that work on the 48-inch sewerage line would be completed in two or three days' time.

The Commissioner of Karachi, Sohail Rajput, City Administrator Iftikhar Shallwani, Sindh Secretory of Labour Abdul Rasheed Solangi and Secretary of Industries Naseem ul Ghani Sehto were among the many distinguished guests who attended the annual dinner of KATI.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2020