In a bid to register their strong protest over discrimination against the Punjab textile industry over gas prices, a key input, a lot of associations of textile manufacturers in Pakistan have said they will observe December 6 as ‘Black Day’. The disparity in gas prices had shattered the entire industrial chain in Punjab, the associations say.
All trade bodies including the Pakistan Textile Exporters Association (PTEA), Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FCCI) and All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) have lashed out at what they say was the government’s discrimination against the Punjab-based textile industry as it was bearing the brunt of gas shortage.

PTEA Chairman Ajmal Farooq said that industries in Sindh were consuming low-priced gas to meet their needs while Punjab industries, which generated the highest revenue, were compelled to use the expensive re-gasified liquefied natural gas (RLNG) in their production process. With the recent reduction in the industrial gas tariff, the price for Sindh industries has become Rs400 per million British thermal units (mmbtu) whereas Punjab industries are paying over Rs900 per mmbtu.

Expressing disappointment over the indifference and lack of cooperation from government institutions, Farooq said they were repeatedly voicing their concern over the situation but all of the hue and cry was falling on deaf ears of policymakers. He urged the PM to take notice and ensure gas supply to Punjab at the same price.
He also urged the PM to immediately announce a package for the ailing textile industry and warned if the government did not fulfill their demands, they would hold a massive protest.