Pottery industry on brink of collapse

LALAMUSA: The once-thriving pottery industry is on the verge of collapse, with the majority of factories in Gujrat shuttered due to crippling economic pressures and lack of government support, said Pakistan Pottery Manufacturing Association (PPMA) chairman Haji Muhammad Zahid.

Talking to media, Zahid painted a grim picture of an industry that had been struggling for survival for the past decade. “Due to unnecessary taxes, soaring gas and electricity prices, and lack of government support, only fifteen to twenty factories are operational today out of the one hundred and fifty that once flourished.” The statistics are stark as 90pc of pottery factories in Gujrat had been forced to close their doors, he added.

“There is a clamor for the Independent Power Producers (IPPs) agreement to be addressed, but it has not reached the ears of the government,” he said. “These agreements should be terminated, keeping in mind the wishes of the people. Power should be provided to the public and industry at low cost.” Despite the adversity, Zahid noted the industry’s resilience and competitive spirit.

“We had managed to bring our products to compete with those from China, but today, exorbitant electricity and gas bills and unnecessary taxes have jammed the wheels of our industry,” he explained. The situation had led to an exodus mindset among industrialists. “Everyone is in a dilemma, considering selling everything, saying goodbye to this country, and shifting to another.” He criticised the government for its dual approach: offering incentives to foreign industrialists while neglecting local ones.

“The government is assuring to provide facilities to the industrialists of other countries to set up industries in Pakistan, but the industrialists of Pakistan are being strangled by many unnecessary policies,” Zahid asserted. Zahid made a heartfelt appeal to the highest office in the country.