Pakistan’s textile industry association representatives have unanimously decided to request the Punjab chief minister for uniform energy pricing and immediate liquidation of the stuck-up sales tax refunds. They met recently at the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) office in Lahore to discuss the viability of the textile industry in Punjab.

The associations urged the provincial government to either secure a uniform energy price from the central government or bear the price differential, according to Pakistani media reports.

The meeting was attended by representatives of the APMTA, Pakistan Readymade Garments Manufaturers and Exporters Association (PRGMEA), Pakistan Hosiery Manufacturers and Exporters Assocation (PHMA), Pakistan Textile Exporters Assocation (PTEA), All Pakistan Textile Processing Mills Association (APTPMA), Council of Powerlooms Association and Pakistan Kintwear and Sweater Exporters Association (PAKSEA).

Energy price disparity has turned the manufacturing units of spinning, weaving, dyeing, readymade garments, hosiery, towel and other sectors redundant and workers were being regularly laid off, according to the associations.(From China Texnet)