Industrialists demand increased security

Fear spreads after killing of a prominent industrialist.

FAISALABAD: Condemning the murder of a prominent industrialist Khwaja Javed Aziz, Faisalabad’s trade and business community has demanded increased security and urged the government to take practical steps to control law and order in the city.

Speaking at a meeting of trade and textile associations at the office of Pakistan Textile Exporters Association (PTEA) here on Tuesday, PTEA Chairman Rana Arif Tauseef said that the city that earns 60% revenue for the country has been left at the mercy of extortionists and robbers.

He said that lapse of security caused fear among industrialists and they were unable to reach factories. “The law and order situation is worsening and now it has become so dangerous that if traders resist and refuse to give extortion money to criminals, they are killed,” he said.

Tauseef said that though the authorities recognise the rising trend of extortion in the city, little has been done to stop such activities.

Textile is the backbone of national economy and provides employment to 40 per cent of the labour force.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 19^th, 2011.