All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) has rejected accusations hurdled at a recent meeting of the National Assembly Standing Committee on Commerce.

The association was recently criticized as a non-performing sector despite conferred with ample ‘subsidies’ from the government. Moreover, it has also been alleged that yarn manufacturers and spinners sell maximum products locally but enjoy the status of an export-oriented industry. The textile sector is also wrongly indicted of presenting ‘fake invoices’ to reap the benefits of subsidies.

The implementation of FBR’s faster and WeBOC systems ensure invoices are scrutinized digitally without any human involvement. The taxes and processing of refunds are also done automatically after complete verification of transactions. Thus, faking invoices for ‘subsidies’ is highly improbable, given the efficiency of FBR’s portal. The companies in this sector pay their dues in full in a timely manner, and with honesty. APTMA is of the view that yarn manufacturers lie at the bottom of the textile value chain feeding raw materials to value-added entities to make exportable products. Spinners are indirect exporters. A quick analysis would reveal that yarn export decreased since larger firms were locally procuring raw materials for the export of value-added products – earning precious foreign reserves, reducing import bill, and promoting the domestic industry.