FAISALABAD The City

PHMEA for no payment, no refund system
From Our Correspondent
FAISALABAD: Value-added textile sector is the backbone of the economy and the government is making efforts to resolve its problems on priority basis, said Federal Parliamentary Secretary for Finance, Economic Affairs and Privatisation MNA Rana Muhammad Afzal Khan.
Addressing a reception hosted in his honour by the Pakistan Hosiery Manufacturers and Exporters Association (PHMEA) here on Tuesday, he said that the shortage of energy had already been identified as the major bottleneck and the government wais trying to overcome it. He said that several projects had been launched with the cooperation of China.
Speaking on the occasion, PHMEA (North Zone) senior vice-chairman Rana Altaf Ahmad pointed out that the problems being faced by the value-added textile sector. Apart from the energy crisis, a huge amount of the textile exporters had been stuck up under the sales tax regime, which was further complementing their financial matters, he added. He demanded that the government allocate sufficient amount in the coming budget to pay off the entire backlog of the refund regime. He also opposed 2 per cent sales tax on the textile sector and reiterated his previous demand of declaring the value-added textile sector as zero-rated. He said that the government should categorically announce no payment, no refund system to save the sector from the undue bureaucratic activities.
Pakistan Textile Exporters Association (PTEA) former chairman Khurram Mukhtar said that several meetings had already been held with the Federal Board of Revenue on zero-rating of the textile sector. He said that all stakeholders were agreed on zero rating and therefore, the issue should be settled positively in the coming federal budget.
All Pakistan Textile Processing Mills Association former chairman Mian Ajmal Farooq demanded exemption to the textile sector from the gas loadshedding.
PHMA former chairman Muhammad Amjad Khawaja and former vice-chairman Syed Zia Alamdar Hussain also spoke on the occasion.
EXPO CENTRE: Expo centre is imperative to showcase the export products of Faisalabad in a modern scientific manner, said Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FCCI) president Rizwan Ashraf.
He was addressing a function regarding the proposed factory outlets in FDA City. He said that the FCCI would form a committee to coordinate with the government to finalise blue-prints of the expo centre.
FDA Chairman Sh Ijaz Ahmad said that the chief minister had entrusted him the task to complete the FDA City project in consultation with the business community of the city. He said that the total area of the FDA city was 1,815 acres whereas 328 kanal had been earmarked for the proposed the expo centre-cum-factory outlets. He supported the idea that the building should be utilised throughout the year and for this purpose, the factory outlets had been proposed to make it productive throughout the year.
DCO Noorul Amin Mengal said that the City District Government Faisalabad had declared three industrial zones in its peri-urban planning by clearly marking Khurrianwala, Millat Road and FIEMC as the industrial areas.