July 16, 2006	Sunday	Jumadi-ul-Sani 19, 1427

KARACHI, July 15: All industrial estates, except Korangi, in Karachi suffered a production loss between 30-50 per cent on Saturday due to low attendance of workers who could not turn up owing to fears of violence in the city in the aftermath of assassination of Allama Hassan Turabi on Friday. The public transport also remained thin due to the strike call given by the MMA.

All the main wholesale and retail markets remained completely shut throughout the day. As a result, supplies of goods from the industries remained suspended along with a halt in procurement of raw material from the markets.

The majority of industrialists could not manage to retain workers and labour of night shifts for Saturday’s morning and afternoon shifts because of the tense situation marred by violence in various parts of the city after the tragic killing of the MMA leader.

Industries in F.B. Area suffered 50 per cent production loss followed by 30-40 per cent in North Karachi industrial area, while former chairmen of Site Association Majyd Aziz had different views on the impact of strike on daily production. He said that attendance in the Site industrial area had remained 98 per cent so there was no major setback to the daily production in the area. However, due to closure of main markets, supply of goods remained completely suspended. “It was a normal production day in Site area on Saturday because of good labour presence,” he claimed.

In sharp contrast, another former chairman of Site Association, Dr Mirza Ikhtiar Baig claimed that the industries recorded 40 per cent attendance of workers on Saturday and only 60 per cent production was achieved.

Thin public transport and closure of petrol pumps since Friday night coupled with tension in the city had crippled industrial activities, thus sending a bad signal to the foreign buyers and investors abroad who consider Karachi as the economic barometer of Pakistan.

He added that the majority of the industrialists could not plan to detain night shifts’ workers on overtime because of uncertain situation and the late strike call given by the MMA.

He said that export shipments destined for Port Qasim and the Karachi Port had been affected besides, industrialists also could not manage to procure diesel and petrol for their in-house transportation system as well as for power generators on time because of closure of pumps from Friday evening, which continued till Saturday.

Site has 2,500-3,000 industries and their sales turnover comes to Rs2 billion per day. Karachi contributes Rs1 billion per day in terms of taxes and duties in which the share of Site is 30 per cent, he claimed.

Chairman Korangi Association of Trade and Industry (Kati), Gulzar Firoz said that everything including the law and order situation was normal in the area as over 90 per cent labour and workers, living in three main colonies around the industrial area, turned up to their respective units, thus achieving over 90 per cent of production. There was a decline of 10-20 per cent in attendance of the office staff who lives in district Central and other areas where tension was prevailing.

He said that even export consignments from the Korangi area had reached the ports without any hindrance.

Former chairman Kati Shaikh Manzar Alam said that over 3,000 industries suffered 25-30 per cent shortfall in attendance of workers and labour that live far from the area, while the labourers, living nearby had reached the units.

“The overall impact of slightly low attendance caused a mere 10-15 per cent production loss on Saturday,” he said adding that there was, however, problems like 100 per cent suspension in daily delivery of goods from the area to the open markets. He claimed that industries in Korangi area contributed Rs200 million per day in shape of taxes and duties to the exchequer.

Chairman F.B. Area Association of Trade and Industry, Rehan Zeeshan said that 80-90 per cent industries were open on Saturday but only 50 per cent production was recorded owing to thin labour attendance in industrial units due to fewer public transport coupled with tension in the area.

He said that the industrialists could not detain the night shift workers for Saturday as the area, some parts of which were close to Ancholi, had remained very tense. As a result, there was problem in sending export consignments to the two ports, especially in afternoon and evening.

F.B. Area has 2,000 industries in which 600 are export-oriented units. The Area provides Rs50 million daily to the national kitty in shape of taxes and duties. Some 25 per cent of garments and textile exports out of total country’s exports are made from the area, he claimed.

Chairman North Karachi Association of Trade and Industry (Nkati), Dawood Usman Jhakoora said that some 70 per cent attendance of workers, labour and staffers in around 2,500 units was recorded in the area but production was down by 30-40 per cent.

However, exporters failed to meet their export commitments as their consignments could not reach the ports because of violence and tension in the city.

Even the industries could not procure the raw material from the markets because of the complete closure besides, there was total suspension in supply of goods from the area to the wholesale and retail markets.