President approves Rs1b for industrial zones

Steps also taken to improve law and order situation.

KARACHI: President Asif Ali Zardari has approved Rs1 billion development funds for four industrial zones of Karachi. The funds will be released to development companies of these industrial zones in 10 days.

Speaking to industrialists at the Federation House on Wednesday, Provincial Minister for Trade and Industries Rauf Siddiqui said that the federal government is planning to release Rs2 billion for the Sindh Industrial and Trading Estate (SITE).

He said that improvement in law and order was essential for promotion of trade and investment after the situation became grave due to the Shershah incident. He said that a complaint cell had been set up in SITE to handle the situation, by registering and reporting threats made on phone to industrialists.

Siddiqui said that Federal Interior Minister Rehman Malik had promised to create a special force for the security of industrial areas of Karachi and added that there had been substantial progress on the issue.

He also said that reformed general sales tax (RGST) should be levied on landlords and sugar mafia, not only on industrialists, as the burden of more taxes on people already in the tax bracket was unjust.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 10^th, 2011.