LAHORE: Pakistan Footwear Manufacturing Association (PFMA) has asked the government to reconsider its decision of announcing 10 days holidays for Eid-ul-Fitr effective from 8th May, 2021 onward, which would ultimately be a complete shutdown for footwear industry, which is still in survival plight due to Covid-19.

The association’s chairman Imran Malik said the current COVID-19 situation has already brought Industry production to halt and this long break will further aggravate the situation to complete export order and procure Raw material due to closer of banks. “Our exporters faced great difficulties during lockdown last year because they could not timely comply with their export orders, he said.

Meanwhile, Chainstore Association of Pakistan (CAP), as the representative trade body for the organized retail sector, has urged the federal government for relaxing the Eid shopping till May 12 so that the financial crisis of the domestic trade could be averted.

Further, extending the Eid shopping will enable the retail sector to contribute around Rs 40 to 50 billion of taxes to the national kitty in tune of income, sales and other taxes.

The federal government has already announced the “stay home stay safe” restrictions including longest ever Eid holidays starting from May 8 on the pretext to break ongoing third wave of Covid-19 pandemic.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021