KARACHI:
The major industrial sector stakeholders including SITE Association of Industry (SAI) Patron-in-Chief Zubair Motiwala, SAI President Ahmed Azeem Alvi, Chief Coordinator Saleem Parekh and All Pakistan Textile Processing Mills Association (APTPMA) Regional Chairman Anwer Aziz have voiced grave concern over the worsening water supply situation in the SITE industrial area.
They said water supply from the Karachi Water and Sewerage Corporation through two direct connections remained alarmingly low despite the allocation of eight million gallons per day to the zone, posing a major threat to industrial operations.
Water supply has been curtailed or is being delivered at low pressure, forcing industries to rely on limited water through bowsers. The situation has worsened recently following a decline in subsoil water levels, resulting in the closure of several factories.
Owing to this acute water shortage, all industries, particularly the export-oriented ones, are suffering huge losses and facing difficulties in fulfilling export orders, which puts the country’s reputation at stake.
In this era of intense global competition, the cost of production, which is already higher than regional competitors, has escalated manifold because the industries are procuring water from the tanker mafia. Water shortage has crippled industrial and business activities.
An emergency meeting of industrialists belonging to the SAI and APTPMA was held under the chairmanship of Motiwala at the SAI office. During the meeting, a dedicated committee was formed, headed by Chief Coordinator Saleem Parekh, to engage with both federal and provincial governments on resolving the water supply issue.
Motiwala lamented that water shortage would negatively impact the export target and foreign exchange earnings, adding that Karachi industrial areas were paying 50% of the country’s taxes, but they continued to face unfair treatment.
APTPMA Regional Chairman Anwer Aziz said about 40% of textile processing units in Pakistan were located in the SAI area and water was the basic raw material for them, especially the valued-added textile. “Paucity of water will lead to complete closure of the processing units, leading to massive unemployment and industrial unrest.”
He was of the view that the new scenario after the reciprocal tariffs would also affect Pakistani textile share in the US due to higher costs. However, the 90-day reprieve given by President Trump should give the stakeholders and the government an opportunity to revisit the deficiencies in the continuous supply of water, power and gas.
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