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Exclusive Export

Terminal to start

working from May 1

AMANULLAH BASHAR

KARACHI: An Exclusive Export Terminal will start functioning at Karachi Port from May 1, while a similar export terminal will be set up at Port Qasim, with a view to accelerating the pace of exports from the country.

This was disclosed by Salman Farooqui, Secretary for Commerce, while addressing the Site Association of Industry members here on Saturday.

These export terminals, he said, will be operating on one window basis where offices of all the relevant agencies including Export Promotion Bureau, National Logistic Cell (NLC), banks, customs, etc. will be functioning round the clock.

Another major decision for acceleration of exports, which was notified on Saturday, was clear-cut instructions to the authorities to issue bill of lading on the same day for consignments received upto 5 p.m.

Earlier the deadline for issuing the bill of lading was 11 in the morning.

Regarding the status of the "most favoured nation" (MFN) to India following agreement with the World Trade Organisation (WTO), the secretary said that the government was not in a great hurry on this issue. All pros and cons were being studied sectorwise and after threadbare negotiations on all the issues would the system be allowed to operate in trade with that country, he added.

As for the July 1 deadline for adopting measures for controlling industrial pollution, he said there would be no relaxation of time in this connection and those industries which failed to meet the quality standards for environment control would have to pay the penalty, however, the penalty would be nominal, the secretary said.

It is believed that almost 100 percent industrial units will have to pay penal charges on account of environment control.

The Commerce Secretary also disclosed that land had been acquired for construction of a permanent exhibition complex in Karachi and work on this project would start within the next three weeks. Similar exhibition complexes would also be developed at Lahore and Islamabad, he said.

In order to look after these complexes and also to establish five trade offices abroad in different countries by 1997, a Trade Fair Authority was also being created. All these steps, he said, were being taken by the government to give a boost to our exports, besides revamping of the export guarantee scheme.

Salman Farooqi hinted that the export-oriented industry would soon hear a good news about the establishment of an "Export Bank" or its substitute.

Regarding the agriculture sector, he said that the government was determined to introduce a "crop insurance scheme" from the next financial year to bring stability in our agriculture production.

Commenting on the demand of the industrialists for laying an additional pipeline of 100 mgd from Hub source to supply 20 mgd to the industrial area of Site, the Secretary suggested that the industrialists should bear the total cost of the pipeline while the water would be supplied by the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board.

The meeting was also attended, besides prominent industrialists, by the heads of different organisations, including Syed Tanzim Hussain Naqvi, Chairman, KESC, Brig. Mansoor of Karachi Water and Sewerage Board, the Director General of Karachi Development Authority and the Managing Director of Site Limited.

Earlier, the Chairman of Site Association, Tariq Yousuf presented an address of welcome.