KP traders seek issuance of separate code for jaggery export

PESHAWAR: The Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) on Monday asked the Federal Ministry of Commerce and Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to issue a separate HS code for export of gur (jaggery).

The demand was made by Gur Mandi Association President Ihsanullah Mohmand during a meeting with SCCI President Engineer Maqsood Anwar Pervaiz at the Chamber House.

Besides others, SCCI Senior Vice President Shahid Hussain, Vice President Abdul Jalil Jan, office-bearers of the Gur Mandi Association, Ayub Mohmand, Shabbir Ahmad Khan, Tehmas Khan, Muhammad Sakhi, Muhammad Amin, Asif, Amirzada, Sabarzada and others attended the meeting.

The meeting was informed that the Customs authorities have included gur (jaggery) in code with sugar and brown sugar as gur (jaggery) was an agro-based organic product cooked widely around sugarcane producing areas across South Asia and Africa from sugarcane juice.

The participants said that 99 per cent of gur (jaggery) produced in KP was exported to Afghanistan and creating hurdles in its exports would inflict losses on its traders through demurrages incurred through block trucks at Torkham due to mistaken inclusion of gur (jaggery) in the same code with sugar and brown sugar.

The meeting was informed that Pak-Afghan Torkham border was closed down by authorities in May as a precautionary step to contain the spread of Covid-19. However, it said the border was reopened some two weeks ago but export of gur was barred due to the same HS code of sugar and brown sugar, because of which traders suffered huge financial losses.