KARACHI, Dec 10: The textile apparel industry has asked the government to freeze utilities’ rates for a period of 10 years and also enhance research and development support from six to 12 per cent to make the industry competitive in the world market where tough competition from other nations have reduced their market share.

Different trade bodies, representing value-added textile sector, have come up with suggestions on expectations that the government is on a way to formulate new incentives package for textile sector which is currently passing through its most difficult time.

Industry had been claiming that around 150 spinning units and around 300 textile apparel units belonging to knitting, home textile, readymade garments have either closed or are on the verge of collapse.

The value-added apparel industry has also came up with a strong demand of discouraging cotton yarn exports which results in higher prices in the domestic market.

The industry has argued that if the government withdraws subsidy incentive on export of yarn being given to spinners for the last so many decades and shift the same for domestic sales, it will have a positive impact on local prices.

The apparel industry pointed out that if government reverses the subsidy incentive, it will directly ensure cheaper yarn for export-oriented value-added textile industry.

They further stated that one kg export of yarn brings around $2.13, against this one kg of export of garment brings about $7.

Consequently, the industry wants the policy markers to realise that how much the country was losing on exporting larger quantities of cotton yarn which does not only make the value-added textile sector to become uncompetitive in the world market but also results in lesser foreign exchange earning.

The apparel industry bodies drew the attention of the government towards a fact that world over governments grant subsidies to those industries which apart from earning higher amount of foreign exchange generate largest employment which helps develop human resource and skills.

The government is working hard for poverty alleviation which could only be tackled by providing jobs at large scale, they said and added and the textile industry was the only sector which have the capacity to provide jobs to skilled and unskilled workforce.

These trade bodes also sought some help from the government for the revival of sick or closed units which were set up after importing latest technology but ran into crisis due to sudden rise in mark-up rates.

Citing an example, they said that out of 20 units manufacturing filament yarn, 16 units have closed down and only four are presently in operation with hardly 50 per cent production. Similarly, five polyester fibre manufacturing units are also operating at 65 per cent of their capacity.If the government comes up with some revival scheme, it will help save huge foreign exchange spent on import textile machinery presently lying idle in many closed units across the country and will also help generate employment.