LAHORE, Jan 2: The Pakistan Industrial and Traders Associations Front has urged the government to save millions of industrial workers from going jobless in the wake of closing industrial units because of acute power and gas shortage.

Front Chairman Irfan Qaiser Sheikh said in a statement issued here on Friday that the government would have to reset its priorities because the prevailing circumstances were forcing the industrialists to close down their units. He said the industry was given a priority in terms of gas and power supply all over the world, but the situation was altogether different in Pakistan.

Sheikh said violent protests in Faisalabad should be an eye opener for those at the helm of affairs. It was just the beginning and the situation could take an ugly turn in the coming days. He said the front was planning an all Pakistan trade bodies conference to evolve a strategy against the prevailing energy crisis. — Reporter