FAISALABAD, Jan 6: The Faisalabad Electricity Supply Company (Fesco) continued jangling businessmen’s nerves with its out of the blue yet hours-long power loadshedding and textile exporters apprehend that current power and gas crisis will inflict irreparable loss on national economy if the government did not take urgent remedial steps.
The intensity of power outages is getting graver and graver with every passing day, putting extra financial burden on industrialists because they are missing their production deadlines besides rendering many workers, prominently daily wagers, jobless.
Several meetings between factory owners and officials of Fesco and Pakistan Electric Power Company (Pepco), which is a production company, have been held to identify ways and means to improve the alarming situation, but to no avail.
A delegation consisting of representatives of traders and industrialists, hosiery manufacturers and office-bearers of Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce and Industries (FCCI) called on Pepco managing director Munawar Baseer around three days ago in his office in Lahore and apprised him of their sufferings.
Sources privy to this meeting told Dawn that the Pepco managing director ensured the visitors that Fesco would curtail the intensity of power outages and bring them to a few hours only and that too would be carried out according to a schedule, which was later given to the delegation.
This assurance, according to sources, brought a sigh of relief for the industrialists. However, intermittent power supply by Fesco indicated that nothing has been done practically.
The Fseco is still suspending electricity for hours ignoring the scheduled handed over to businessmen’s delegation couple of days ago in Lahore and there are no signs of improvement in the deteriorating power supply situation. Industries still remain shut for hours compelling owners to retrench their staffers.
The city houses thousands of power looms and hosiery manufacturing units beside textile processing, dying, spinning and sizing units, which provide employments to around one million people.
Tahir Ishaque, the chairman of Pakistan Textile Exporters Association (PTEA), a premier body of country’s exporters, said severe crisis of electricity loadshedding coupled with gas outages was becoming a recipe of disaster for their industry.
The situation would result in the closure of industrial units rendering scores of workers jobless, he said and added that this situation would further affect the law and order situation in the country.
He said that the closure of industries for ten working days on account of Eidul Azha, Christmas and Benazir Bhutto’s assassination severely affected their production calendars and disruption of transport system in the wake of arson attacks and riots in Sindh province further augmented the woes of upcountry exporters.
Ishaque said that poor security situation in the country was delaying their export shipments, putting extra financial burden on them.
Around four days ago, industrialists of this city had threatened to close down their factories to protest the ongoing power crisis, pushing them in an eerie situation.
The warning was issued after a meeting between the industrialists’ representatives and Fesco chief executive did not yield any results.
However, the Fesco chief executive persuaded the industrialists to avoid taking such an extreme step and instead meet with the managing director of Pepco to resolve the issue amicably.
Ishaque said that seven per cent inflation in gas price announced by the government added fuel to the fire. He said that the month of Muharrum was on the threshold while general elections were approaching next month and if the situation did not improve, Pakistani exporters would not be able to compete with their rivals in international markets. He urged the authorities concerned to redress their problems immediately.
Around 40 power looms and shuttle looms have suspended their working in the wake of current power crisis on Saturday and Sunday. They have cancelled their orders and asked customers to contact the manufacturing and processing units having in-built power generation capacity.
Waheed Ramay, the FCCI executive member, said they took up the issue again with the authorities concerned, reminding them their promises and the ensuing situation but the power crisis aggravated further instead.