Minister urged to ensure 24/7 gas supply

RECORDER REPORT

KARACHI: Pakistan Tanners Association (Southern Zone) chairman Abdul Salam has urged the federal minister for gas and petroleum for helm of SSGC to ensure supply the gas 24/7 to this vital leather industry located at Korangi industrial area (Sector 7-A, Chamara Mandi) so that the major industry would be able to continue the process of raw hides and skins to finished leather form with more value addition for execution of export orders in time against the commitments to secure the precious foreign exchange for the country.

He informed that the tanning industry, which is producing mother product of finished leather from raw hides and skins with highly value addition @ 300 percent, is completely deprived for the supply of gas to this vital export oriented industry especially to the area of Chamra Mandi (Section 7-A, Korangi Industrial Area, Karachi).

He said in result of severe scarcity of gas, which is most important element in this continuous process industry of the country, the export orders are becoming jeopardize for the cancellation of non-execution within the mutual agreed time frame against export orders placed by the foreign buyers/customers, which would obviously not bring the negative impact for infringement to the agreement with the foreign buyers/customers but also country will lose the precious foreign exchange for the national exchequer.

Abdul Salam also articulated here that the tanning industry (leather sector of Pakistan, which is 2nd biggest export oriented value added Industry of the country is already in crisis for the survival in the wake of Pandemic Covid-19 and the interruption of gas supply to this industry would also be another setback for the industry.

He highlighted the significant aspect that the raw hides and skins is completely perishable item, which needs to be procured & preserved within the limited time frame with due process of tanning for which the gas supply without interruption is utmost imperative, besides the Eidul Azha is knocking at the door, which would be exceptional religious event for the procurement of raw hides & skins of sacrificial animals to be in millions of skins of all sorts, for which necessary preparation work are mandatory to be made at the tanneries for smooth and ensure process of raw hides & skins and the interrupted gas supply is most essential ingredients for the due process.