PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP)Assembly Monday was informed that as many as 304 factories have been shutdown from 2017 to 2020 across the KP.
The report said that the industrial units were shut down due to non-availability of gas and electricity, financial issues, non-execution of NOC and other reasons. The House was told that a total of 5,902 employees lost their jobs after the closer of these units.
The Awami National Party (ANP) member of the Assembly and former Deputy Speaker, Khushdil Khan, stated that not only thousands of workers lost a source of livings but the but the provincial is also deprived of billions of rupee income in the form of various taxes.
The ANP leader demanded the KP government to explain what steps have been taken to revive all the closed and sick industrial units in the KP. “If the government had taken any positive measures, these industrial units would not have been closed and thousands of workers would not have been deprived of employment,” Khushdil Khan said.
Special Assistant to Chief Minister on Industries, Abdul Karim Khan, said that collection of income tax, Excise and Customs are federal subjects. He said that former Chief Minister Pervez Khattak had sanctioned 100 MMcfd gas for industries, of which 30 percent has been provided to Rishakai special economic zone.
Karim Khan said that provincial government has taken steps for the restoration and development of industries. He explained that an industrial estate is being built at Zangi and for the first time, the PTI government has introduced an industrial policy under which industrialists can avail interest-free loans of PKR 20 million. According to the new law, the special Assistant informed, in any Industrial Estate, the plot owner is obliged to start construction within six months, and production within two months.
