KARACHI: About 1,000 million rupees were lost in monetary terms in Karachi alone during the last five months of strikes and demonstrations along with a loss of one hundred million man hours. Disclosing this at a Press conference here yesterday [March 20], Mr Yusuf H. Shirazi, President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said the industrialists would have to pay about Rs 10 crore in wages for the man hours lost.

Giving details of the colossal losses the Chamber President said revenue loss on account of income tax, corporation tax, sales tax and excise duties due to the cessation of production was estimated at Rs 20 crore and fall in the value of stocks and securities stood at about Rs 50 crores. Mr Shirazi said imports and exports had equally suffered due to strikes in the dock yard and by KPT workers. Export cargo worth Rs 4.55 crore was pending shipment and an equal amount of import cargo also remained unloaded for the last ten days.

These losses and delays, he said, were going to hit the economy at its very root and very soon it would create scarcities of goods and increase prices and the consumers would be the worst sufferers, he added. ... Industrialists were ready to consider reasonable proposals by workers’ representatives provided all sections of workers were agreed on these, he said. — Agency

Published in Dawn, March 22nd, 2019