Addressing a media conference, Chairman APTPMA Faisalabad region, Khalid Habib Sheikh, and others said that increase in gas tariff immediately after enforcement of GIDC is highly detrimental for the textile processing industry, while Transaction Rationalisation Surcharge (TRS) and Financial Surcharge (FC) added in electricity bills, which would not only prove a last nail in the coffin of value-added textile industry but also precipitate unemployment in the country.
They mentioned that OGRA has issued notification in which the prices for domestic consumers have increased up to 3.8 percent, commercial 9.9 percent while this increase is 23 to 27 percent for the industry. It clearly indicates that the industry is not a priority of the government and through this decision; the government has actually paved way for the spontaneous death of dying industry.
Commenting over withholding tax (WHT), Senior Vice president Nadeem Allahwala mentioned that the government has neither ability nor capacity to pay back the withhold taxes. Hence, there is no justification to impose WHT. He said that all over the world, incentives are provided to the non-filers to being them within the tax net while in Pakistan coercive measures are adopted to bring them within tax net. He said that in this connection, lethal legislative measures are used and even the existing tax payers like to get rid of it. He said that there is no concept of early refund in Pakistan and at the moment, textile industry is facing financial crunch only due to the non-payment of their refund claims. Mian Aftab Ahmad, Sheikh Saeed Ahmad and Muhammad Amjad also addressed the media conference.