KCCI President urges swift release of Rs28bn for Karachi industries

January 29, 2024 (MLN): President of the Karachi Chamber of Commerce & Industry (KCCI), Iftikhar Ahmed Sheikh, has urged the government to not only immediately release the already earmarked Rs7 billion for the previous incremental consumption package but also to arrange the remaining Rs21bn.

This amount has been pending for the incremental consumption of Karachi-based industries for a considerable period, despite commitments made by the previous government and assurances given by Caretaker Minister for Energy Muhammad Ali during his last visit to KCCI.

In a statement issued, President KCCI pointed out that the funds against the said incremental package have been released across Pakistan except Karachi which was a sheer injustice to the largest city of the country which contributes more than 68% of revenue to the national exchequer.

He further stressed that the government must also implement its decision to allow power tariff at the rate of 9 cents/KWh to industrial consumers of Karachi, which has been confirmed time and again by the energy minister on various platforms including mainstream media but the relevant notification, in this regard, was still awaited.

Delays in the release of overdue Rs28bn under the previous incremental package have triggered a lot of anxiety amongst members of the business community who were already too perturbed due to the sky-rocketing cost of doing business triggered mainly by the exorbitantly high energy tariffs.

“The immediate release of funds is now crucial to prevent the imminent risk of industrial shutdowns, which would have a deep impact on the already ailing economy, besides triggering massive unemployment”, he added.

Highlighting the miseries being faced by Karachi-based industries, President KCCI stated that it was worrisome that a substantial number of small and medium-sized industries have closed down their production activities whereas the large-scale manufacturing units were, nowadays, going through the toughest times and on the brink of collapse.

This comes due to a bad economic situation, unbearable energy tariffs, massive currency depreciation, high borrowing costs and colossal hike in input costs which were rapidly plunging Karachi-based industries in a disastrous situation.

Keeping in view the matchless contribution being made by Karachi city in the economic development of the entire of Pakistan, Iftikhar Sheikh stressed that it was really important to address the concerns of Karachi-based industries and demonstrate a commitment to fostering an environment of equal opportunity and support.

However, this was not happening at all as Karachi continues to face step-motherly treatment from the federation.

“We hope that the lawmakers in Islamabad would realize the gravity of the situation and immediately issue directives for the release of pending funds at the earliest possible time”, he added.

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