LAHORE, March 28: The Poultry Association of Pakistan on Tuesday sought a relief package as it had plunged into fiscal crisis on three accounts —- ban on wedding meals, earth quake and bird flu rumours. In a letter to the prime minister, Senior Vice-President of the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry and former chairman of the PPA Abdul Basit said that the industry had suffered crisis after crisis since 1997.

The then government had imposed a ban on wedding meals. Since then, it is off-and-on ban situation affecting the industry badly, he said, adding it was 2003 when bird flu rumours shook the industry.

The letter said that because of the ban on wedding food, millions of people had suffered. The decision is a conspiracy against the government which is working for the welfare of people. The ban on the one hand has raised unemployment graph while on the other it has kept some Rs450 billion out of circulation.

The poultry industry has an overall role to play in the economy of the country but no new investment was coming in the sector due to the ban. The government must lift the ban. If not possible, it must at least allow one dish.

The letter also sought the help of the government in lending credence to World Health Organisation observations that cooked food is safe for human by publicly consuming chicken. Due to bird flu rumours, people are importing beef and mutton from India in spite of the fact that mad cow disease has its origin in India, it concluded. —Staff Reporter