FPCCI wants amendments in budget before approval.

LAHORE -- Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry President Mian Anjum Nisar has termed the recently announced federal budget 2020-21 as status quo and conventional budget, as the bureaucracy has tried to further accumulate its powers through this opportunity. Moreover, the budget provided nothing to run the industry or sustain the country's exports in post-corona slowdown, besides putting adverse effect on the prime minister's policy to generate millions of jobs in the country.

Addressing a press conference here at PIAF Office, which was also attended online by the FPCCI office-bearers of Karachi and Islamabad offices, FPCCI president Mian Anjum Nisar called for amendments in budget before the approval of finance bill in the national assembly. He was flanked by the regional chairman Dr Arshad and LCCI former president Muhammad Ali Mian in the press briefing.

He said that the FPCCI's most of the suggestions were ignored and just few recommendations were incorporated in the budget. He said the mandatory CNIC condition for business transactions of Rs50,000 and above has been creating a lot of problems for the business community besides sending lot of money out of the economy. The government should have abolished this condition in the current fiscal year budget to facilitate the smooth growth of business activities. Instead of abolishing this harsh condition the government just enhanced the limit of transaction amount for CNIC condition from Rs50,000 to Rs100,000. He said that businesses were already suffering huge losses due to the COVID-19, so in these circumstances, government should refrain from imposing conditions that were making it difficult to promote businesses. In the first step the government will have to document the economy then it should implement CNIC condition, he suggested.

Mian Anjum Nisar expressed serious concerns over severe liquidity crunch of the trade and industry both domestic as well as the export-oriented sector owing to non-payment by the international buyers amidst worldwide lockdown due to pandemic, creating a risk of millions of workers rendering unemployed.

He said the financial losses to the trade and industry have been multiplying every day and they were facing severe liquidity crises. He said that with a view to keep the industry live major problem is cash flow which can be resolved through early refunds system, cut in taxes and markup rate.

FPCCI leader observed that the FPCCI was expecting...

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