VEHARI, May 11: Mill owners throughout Punjab will go on strike from today (Thursday) against the imposition of 15 per cent sales tax on cotton seed oil.

Several mill owners and their association’s representatives held a protest meeting here on Wednesday.

Talking to the press, Punjab Oil Mills Association president Mohammad Ashiq Bhatti and its district chief Khawar Nazeer Hinjra said the federal government had imposed sales tax on cotton seed oil about a year back as a result of which the industry was facing a crisis. They said the strike would affect scores of labourers.

They said various government representatives last year had promised to withdraw the tax after meeting with them but the government did not honour its commitment. They said after the imposition of tax, ghee mills had refused to purchase oil from mills, resulting in closure of dozens of oil units throughout the country.

They said their strike would continue till the acceptance of their demand of withdrawal of sales tax.