Sindh to resist Textile City project shutdown

KARACHI: The federal government has advised Sindh government to shut down Pakistan Textile City project in Karachi but provincial authorities have decided to resist the move, source in the government told The News on Friday. 

“The federal government has been pushing the provincial government for last eight months to cancel the project, citing delay in the development work.

However, the provincial government is now forced to take a decision in 15 days and hand over the land to the federal government,” sources said. 

In this regard, Prime Minister’s advisor on legal affairs Barrister Zafarullah Khan chaired a meeting, which was attended by Federal Secretary on Textile City Hassan Iqbal, Chairman Port Qasim Agha Jan Akhtar, CEO Hanif Kasbati, and Sindh Secretary for Industries and Commerce Abdul Raheem Soomro attended the meeting. 

According to sources the representative of Sindh in the meeting resisted the decision of the federal government, asserting the provincial government would continue to work on it, as Sindh was a cotton growing province with a huge share in the textile exports. 

“Textile City project holds a very important position in the industry of the province as it will create 160,000 direct and indirect jobs apart from boosting exports,” Soomro told the meeting. 

He further informed the meeting the provincial authorities had also discussed this issue with Chinese authorities to get it included in China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).  “The land could not be handed over to the federal government,” he told the meeting, adding, because it is the sole property of the provincial government and in the light of 18th amendment collection of tax is Sindh's right. 

After hearing Soomro’s arguments, Barrister Zafarullah Khan said he would inform the Prime Minister about Sindh government’s reservations and hold another meeting soon.  Textile City is a joint venture of federal and provincial government and Rs1.29 billion has already been spent on it. Two Textile City projects were already operating in Lahore and Islamabad. 

Later, talking to The News, Soomro said gas utilities have not yet reached the project because they worked under the federal government.

“We have supplied water, laid roads, and leveled the plots at the project site,” he said adding, the government was all set to launch a marketing campaign for the project when it received the instructions for closing it down. 

On the other hand, Minister for Industries and Commerce, Manzoor Hussain Wassan, in a statement said the project would not be scratched in any situation. “Sindh government will complete this project and operate it,” he said. 

Textile City project in Karachi started in 2004-5 at 1,250 acres of land that could generate 80,000 direct and 80,000 indirect jobs. Recently, work on roads and water supply schemes were completed by the provincial government. A total of Rs1.29 billion has already been spent.