FAISALABAD, Jan 28: The All Pakistan Textile Processing Mills Association, the Faisalabad Dryport Trust and the Pakistan Hosiery Manufacturers Association have demanded immediate restoration of gas supply to industrial units.

In separate statements office-bearers of these bodies said that industrial sectors like chemicals, raw material, semi-finished fabrics would have to face loss of billions of rupees if the gas supply was not restored immediately.

APTPMA Chairman M. Iqbal Arbi said that the repeated suspension of gas supply to textile processing units of the province was causing financial constraints and loss of foreign exchange to the tune of billions of rupees.

He demanded adequate security measures for the protection of the main pipeline of Sui fields.

“Gas is essential for running the boilers of the textile processing units and constitutes nearly 25 per cent of the total cost of inputs,” he said.

Faisalabad Dryport Trust Senior Vice-Chairman Syed Fahim Mahmood Shah said that the suspension of gas supply to industries in the Punjab has caused loss of Rs30 billion. Around 1,100 industrial units in the province have not been in operation for the last one week.

He said that 80 per cent industrial units, especially cloth printing units and ghee mills, were severely effected by the gas suspension.

Pakistan Hosiery Manufac-turers Association Vice-Chairman Shaheen Tabassum said that due to closure of dying, washing, processing and printing mills, the production of knitwear apparels industry would be badly effected. This would delay completion of export orders and may result in cancellation of these orders.