In the meantime, the textile sector is the only avenue in this country that offers mass employment. I can say from personal experience that an agricultural land of 7-10 acres offers employment to 5--10 workers, but an industry on the same area of land can employ 500 to 5,000 workers. In this situation it is unfortunate that the caretaker government has imposed a tax on production machinery for the textile sector.

We, unfortunately, do not produce textile machines. We also do not manufacture the fax machine, but we have to import this piece of technology. Even the World Bank admits that in the improvement of the South-East Asian economies such as Malaysia, allowing technology imports duty-free, such as capital machinery, had a big role to play.

Since, we do not have a domestic infant industry to protect (and even then taxation would not be a good argument), I do not understand who the government is trying to protect?

The factories and mills in the textile sector are competing with each other for a matter of 1 dollar, 10 cents etc. In any other country the government creates a better environment, so that the local industries can compete internationally.

We do not expect our government to carry out such policies in support of the domestic industrial sector, but the least we expect is no interference in its development. Moreover, production machinery is an essential item, not a luxury one.

Shouldn't the government try to protect the textile industry, which is competing with the big players in the market such as China, with subsidies and incentives?