Prolonged Gas Load shedding: APTMA threatens to launch a protest series in Punjab

Prolonged Gas Load shedding: APTMA threatens to launch a protest series in Punjab

Lahore: With the failure of Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited to ensure sustained supply of gas to the textile sector, the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) Punjab chapter has threatened today to launch a series of
protests to save the textile industry in the province.

The decision to protest against unscheduled gas load shedding was taken in the APTMA meeting in Lahore House where all the chapters of the organization expressed their resolve to go to any extent, including launching protests,
blocking roads and calling for strikes throughout Punjab, if uninterrupted gas supply was not provided to the textile sector, as it was promised by Dr. Asim Hussain, the Federal Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources.

After the meeting, Mr. Ahsan Bashir, the chairman APTMA and Gohar Ijaz, the Group Leader APTMA gave briefing to the media personnel about the decisions the textile industry was contemplating to take to have the gas supply restored.

Expressing the APTMA’s willingness to go to any extent, Ijaz said that they could even shut down the entire industry if the government had any such intentions. He said, “The industry is backbone of the country but if the government
is in no need of the industry, then we are ready to shut it down”.

Ijaz said that around 80 percent of the textile industries are in Punjab and it employs 15 million people and by neglecting Punjab, the government is neglecting a province that provides food and shelter to millions of people.

Ijaz also said that the industry pays large amounts in taxes to the federal government but instead of returning the favour, some ministers had presented a summery in a cabinet meeting asking for 90 days of gas curtailment in Punjab.

“Such policies are taking the industry towards bankruptcy,” Ijaz added.

Bashir complained that despite Federal Minster’s assurance of uninterrupted gas supply for four days a week, gas pressure was almost at zero for around 70 percent of the textile industries.

“The alternate solutions for energy are much costly and it would increase per unit cost up to Rs25,” Bashir said.

The APTMA Punjab Chairman further said that the Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda) does not have enough electricity to provide to the industrial sector.

“We fear a 25 percent cut in our export targets due to the present crises,” Bashir added.

Bashir explained that Pakistan’s $14 billion contribution in the $800 billion worldwide cotton market is a very small contribution and that it might experience a decline due to the present crisis.

“The world has many other options [for cotton supply] and might shift to India or Bangladesh,” Bashir said.

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Posted by Fayyaz Yaseen on Dec 12 2011. Filed under Latest News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry