FAISALABAD, Dec 20: The All-Pakistan Cloth Exporters Association (APCEA) has criticized the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) for mismanagement and mishandling of textile quota and discriminatory and biased policies against up country exporters which resulted in the loss of $10 million forex.

APCEA chairman Ahmad Kamal told newsmen here on Saturday that the EPB had made a flawed policy of monitoring of bed linen category (Cat-20 EU) as a result of which some exporters made over-shipments resulting in imposition of embargo by the European Commission. The exporters with regular performance quota were refused export licenses by the EPB and to cover up its ineptness and mismanagement, it asked them to get their shipments released against their entitlement of 2003 quota. They were constrained to do so as their shipments had reached their destination and heavy demurrage was looming large.

He said exporters had to bear double loss; they were denied textile quota of bed linen 2002 worth $5 million by the EPB. They also suffered $5 million loss as they were denied performance quota of 2003 against their entitlement.

To add insult to injury, the EPB refused compensation to the exporters on one pretext or the other. They moved the court to seek relief but the EPB arbitrarily implemented the order, he added.

Mr Kamal said the EPB again resorted to injustice and unfairness by refusing issuance of visas to up country exporters on the pretext of producing original MR.

The APCEA chairman claimed that exports declined by 12 per cent in November. He feared that exports would decline further due to mishandling and mismanagement of quota by the EPB.