08 February 2004	Sunday	16 Zilhaj 1424

KARACHI, Feb 7: A joint stock company (JSC) with a task to look after the affairs and management of the proposed textile city near Port Qasim will be set up in two weeks time and the first meeting of its shareholders will be held on Monday.

This was disclosed by Javed Ashraf Hussain, Secretary of ministry of industries and production, on Saturday at a hurriedly called press conference held at PIDC.

Assisted by Textile Commissioner Idris Ahmed the secretary said for the last eight months several meetings had been held for setting up the mega project of textile city, but now the time had come where tangible results would start forthcoming.

The initial capital of the JSC, he said, would be one billion rupees, of which 50 per cent would be contributed by the government and 50 per cent by the private corporate sector and banks.

He further said that it had been formally approved that the JSC would have 10 shareholders and its board will comprise five directors from the government and five each from corporate sector, banks and investment companies on rotation basis.

The secretary industries said earlier in the day he presided over a meeting where all the representatives of different civic bodies, heads of banks and financial institutions along with government officials participated to discuss future plans with regard to the textile city.

Other than the 50 per cent government share in the JSC, he said, banks and investment companies like NBP, Pak-Oman, Pak-Kuwait, Pak-Libya, PICIC and Saudi-Pak along with the PQA, EPZ and PIDC would be giving 10 per cent towards share or seed money in the account of the company.

Mr Hussain said the joint stock company would be headed by a professionally qualified CEO and would be responsible for developing and managing the affairs of the textile city. The registration of the JSC will be done in two weeks time and the government will notify the board of directors.

He further said that under first phase 700 acres of land would be acquired from the PQA at concessional rates and the same could be expanded up to 1,250 acres. The 700-acre land will be acquired within one month from the PQA to put up the entire case before the ECC in the next meeting.

With regard to planning, he said the size of each industrial plot would be of five acre and if any industrial unit required more than that it would be allowed to purchase more plots. Regarding civic and infrastructure facilities, he said their provision and supply had been ensured from bodies concerned.

There would be independent power plant to ensure stable power supply, besides effluent treatment plant would be installed to provide cleaner environment as per WTO rules. Specially treated water of 20mgd has been committed by the Water Board at a cost of Rs530 million for the textile city. The 20mgd will be arranged by the Water Board out of 100mgd being developed from the Indus source for the city, he added.

He disclosed that during his meeting with 10 leading textile tycoons it was transpired that the plots be handed over at the earliest so that they could start structural work of their buildings side by side with general development of the textile city.

Mr Hussain said keen interest was being show by the local as well as foreign investors in the mega project of textile city and added that JETRO representative had informed the government that many Japanese investors were keen to set up their units in the city.

Responding to a question, he said ground-breaking ceremony of the project could be made within next two months which might be performed by the president or the prime minister. He said production activity in the textile city could start in next 18 months.

In reply to another question, he said the export potential of the textile city, which had the charter of the Export Processing Zone, was of around $2.5 billion per annum and it would generate up to 80,000 additional jobs. After setting up in Karachi, he said, one each city would be established in Lahore and Faisalabad.