‘Ready-made garments cluster to be set up in City’

LAHORE: The Punjab government has decided to establish a ready-made garments cluster in Lahore where a fashion studio will also be set up that will be made operational in August this year.

This was stated by Punjab Minister for Industry and Trade Mian Aslam Iqbal in a meeting held here on Wednesday at the office of Punjab Small Industries Corporation. The experts of United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) in readymade garments briefed the meeting about the project. Addressing the meeting, the minister said that cluster development project had a pivotal role in promoting social and economic activities and this project would also be a source of enhancing export and creating employment opportunities. He said that the project would also improve the image of Pakistan in the world.

This project will also provide creative facilities to the cluster companies and units established in Quaid-e-Azam Apparel Park. This project will also leave positive impact on the industry. He said that increasing the exports was the top most priority of the government and this project would also help in this connection. He said there was a dire need to make contact between cluster and fashion schools. UNIDO experts said there was no deficiency of talent in Pakistan. fruit, vegetables markets: The district administration is strictly monitoring auction and other related arrangements in fruit and vegetables markets of Lahore.

Officials said it was binding on all field officers along with secretary market committee to visit markets daily. The step of the district administration is proving so fruitful that its effects are being observed in local markets, they added.

In the wake of monitoring the markets, Additional Deputy Commissioner (General) Tuqeer Haider Kazmi paid a surprise visit to fruit and vegetable Badami Bagh on Wednesday afternoon where he monitored auction process of onions. He caught red handed a commission agent taking “Dhalli” from farmers. The Dalli is an illegal activity to loot the farmers before the auction process in which commission agent used to take some quantity of items to be auctioned for the purpose of showing quality of items to the purchasers. ADCG Lahore has imposed a fine of twenty thousand to the commission agent Muhammad Nawaz involved in the practice of Dalli and issued him a warning as well, saying to cancel his licence on repeating it. DC Lahore Ms Saleha Saeed has also directed all assistant commissioners to hang banners and steamers in markets to inform the farmers about the illegal practices namely, Dhalli, Chungi and Lagga.