PESHAWAR: Businessmen have asked FBR for steps to curb smuggling instead of imposing restrictions on Pak-Afghan trade. They made the demand during a meeting with Chairman Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Malik Amjad Zubair Tawana at Custom House Peshawar, APP reported.
They said that through trade with Afghanistan, Pakistan can get access to markets of Central Asian Republics and the imposition of a ban on this route would prove detrimental to Pakistan’s economy in the longer run, APP added.
Speaking on the occasion, Zia-ul-Haq Sarhadi was of the view that the bone of contention in the Pak-Afghan trade is smuggling which can be prevented effectively through increasing monitoring and vigilance at different points on borders. He said that imposition of a ban on trade to stop smuggling is not a suitable way and is proving detrimental regarding the expansion of trade at the regional level with the scope of capturing markets in Central Asia.
Pak-Afghan Border
He further said that hundreds of trucks were carrying various goods including petroleum products, cigarettes, edible goods, auto parts etc from Iran on daily basis. Even then, no proper measures are being taken to curb this smuggling which is inflicting huge damage to the national economy, he said.
Zia said that closure of Pak-Afghan trade was also creating a lot of problems for the businessmen, exporters, transporters, and importers and importers, saying that the delay in clearance of goods-laden trucks had become a practice, burdening the businessmen with extra payment of demurrage and detention charges.
Speaking on the occasion, the Chairman FBR apprised the businessmen about steps being taken for provision of ease of doing business to them. He added the government is giving due attention to stabilizing the economy and for this purpose all possible measures to be taken.
