LHC PERMITS PRODUCTION OF GUR AND RAW SUGAR

The Union of Small and Medium Enterprises (UNISAME) has invited the attention of Sauleh Faruqui the federal secretary ministry of commerce (MINCOM to the judgement of Lahore High Court permitting production of jaggery (Gur) and urged him to now allow export of Jaggery to global markets to meet the demand and earn valuable foreign exchange.

Unisame president Zulfikar Thaver said that it was our endeavour to highlight the injustice against jaggery makers and we are grateful to the honourable Justice Shahid Jamil Khan who heard the petitions filed by several sugar mill owners against the fixing of sugar price by the government and saved the jaggery manufacturers from the harassment and permitted them to continue manufacturing to meet the demand of almost every household.

In the detailed verdict, the honourable judge directed all federal and provincial enforcement agencies to refrain from taking any action against farmers producing Gur or raw sugar.

Thaver said the permission given by the honourable judge will now enable the SME farmers and processors to modernize their units and the SME exporters if allowed to export will export to international markets and earn valuable exchange.

It is pertinent to note that jaggery (Gur) industry is a traditional industry and the production of gur although not permitted was being manufactured and the SME farmers and processors engaged in this had to take favours from provincial law enforcing agencies who were preventing them from manufacturing and harassing them. Nevertheless the manufacturing continued but could not be modernized in view of the restraints. The sugar mafia was not in favour of the jaggery industry and created hurdles and framed the laws and regulations to discourage the gur makers.

Thaver now urged the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (SMEDA) to wholeheartedly work for its modernization and also support the demand for allowing its exports..

Posted in: Press Releases