A LEADING daily report recently said that business leaders expressed their resentment over the government’s move to increase power and gas tariffs afresh. Terming the move “unjustified”, they said, the government seems intent on raising energy tariffs in regular intervals due to a “flawed policy”, which will severely affect production and make local industries uncompetitive in the global arena.
The country’s economy is passing a difficult time for which government policy-initiatives are somewhat responsible. This blemished atmosphere of our country’s business has increased due to the government’s fresh move to hike power and gas tariffs. Business classes are mostly worried whether their profit margin will remain constant. They have termed the government’s move for power and gas price hikes as most disturbing and untimely one. Business leaders cautiously stated that the sector is already burdened with the high cost of production, a fresh hike in power and gas tariff would severely hit the industry, besides putting burdens on the common people. The power tariff hike would also make local producers to face more stiff competition in the global market.
It could, in some cases, be tolerated if the government didn’t fail to ensure uninterrupted supply of power to the industries. But not only have they been unable to ensure adequate power supply, they are also hiking power prices–which is not sensible at all. So, the business community does not support tariff hikes in power unless the supply is improved. Especially, export based industries such as garment and textile manufacturing units would face serious troubles to retain competitive markets abroad.
We suggest that the government should re-think the price hike of power and gas weighing on its negative impact on overall productivity at industrial and household levels. The cost of business transport will also increase as the power and gas price is high. The experts said that if the price is increased for personal benefits of certain groups, that will create a negative impact on the common people as well as the economy, the overall impact will be counter productive. The effect of power and gas price hike will also make the productivity of small industries vulnerable. In this situation, the authorities must refrain from taking such decisions that could add to the already deepening crises like financial and economic constraints to the industrial and household consumers.
The business communities are still hopeful for a better business. They are still expecting the government to understand their plight, and eventually, declare a reasonable price chart for power and gas. Hikes in energy tariffs always bring negative impacts on production and livelihood of the people, and later it leaves a knock-on effect on the whole economy. In our view, only a lenient power policy can protect our industry and make it competitive in global markets.
