ISLAMABAD: After getting an assurance from the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) over refund of 17pc General Sales Tax (GST) being charged from the pharma industry on the import of raw material, Pakistan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association (PPMA) has decided to extend deadline for nationwide strike.

The government had levied 17pc GST in the last mini budget .

PPMA had given an ultimatum on March 17 that it would close around 600 pharma production units across the country next week.

However, on Tuesday, the association Chairman Qazi Mohammad Mansoor Dilawar said the FBR had promised to refund the levy.

While chairing a meeting of the association, he made it clear that the PPMA would be go on strike if the commitment made by the FBR was not honoured within next five days.

He warned that a nationwide strike by the pharma industry would lead to shortage of medicines but the government would be responsible for the sufferings of the people.

He told a large number of association’s members who attended the meeting that following the ultimatum of going on strike given at a press conference last week, the FBR contacted the association and once again promised to refund GST on purchase of raw material but sought more time for it.

In the last meeting with FBR, all multinational pharmaceutical companies representing 97pc of the pharma industry of Pakistan presented a unified stance, he said.

FBR has not fulfilled its promise it made to PPMA’s as yet as the industry has been paying sales tax on all purchases of raw materials/active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) since Jan 16, he said.

The association chairman Mansoor Dilawar, however, regretted that no headway appears to have been made as neither any notification nor any press release to this effect had so far been issued by the FBR.

The association has urged the government to resolve the matter at the earliest.

Later, talking to mediapersons, member of the PPMA’s Central Executive Committee Usman Shaukat said the FBR continues to give a runaround to the pharma industry and now they were seeking more time saying that an amendment in the law would be required.

Referring to the multiple challenges facing the industry, he said most of the raw material was imported and any increase in dollar rates adversely affected the cost of the local manufacturers.

“The levy of GST on import of raw material is something indigestible,” he remarked.

Earlier, on Marach 17, the association chairman Dilawar had said the prices of a number of materials such as bottles, aluminium and impulse glass, as well as electricity and gas rates were continuously rising and the government also imposed sales tax on them.

“Moreover, the government has imposed sales tax on services of contractors and consultants. “Unfortunately, there is also a huge tax on import of machinery and pharmaceutical plants. Now a tax has been imposed on import of raw material which is not being reimbursed despite committed by the government,” he had regretted.

Published in Dawn, March 23rd, 2022