PESHAWAR: The Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry has demanded of the government to announce a special tax relief package for the lockdown-hit business community to help revive businesses.

The demand was made by SCCI president Maqsood Anwar Pervaiz during a meeting of trader organisations here on Tuesday. SCCI senior vice-president Shahid Hussain and vice-president Abdul Jalil Jan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Outdoor Advertisers Association president Haji Rashid Ahmad, general secretary Asif Hussain, chairman Haji Inayatullah, vice-president Salman Khan, senior vice-president Ismail Pakhtunyar and finance secretary Zahid Khan attended the meeting.

The SCCI chief said the development of business community through effective resolution of their issues was among top priorities of the chamber.

He asked the government to make business-friendly policies in consultation with the SCCI and other stakeholders.

Mr Pervaiz said small businesses were the backbone of the country’s economy, which should be facilitated at every level.

Shahid Hussain and Abdul Jalil Jan said the SCCI would take up the issues of businesspersons at all available platforms for effective resolution.

Meanwhile, SCCI president Maqsood Anwar Pervaiz has demanded of the Federal Board of Revenue to defer the enforcement of point of sale system for one year to benefit businesspersons.

The demand was made during a meeting of traders here on Monday. The SCCI president said the FBR had issued instructions to all retailers to integrate with its point of sale before Aug 31, 2020.

He said business activities were adversely affected by the prolonged coronavirus-induced lockdown, which caused huge losses to businesses.

“Implementation of the point of sale system will be unjust in the current circumstances. The FBR should defer it for one year,” he said. Mr Pervaiz resented arrest of traders on pretext of anti-encroachment drive and asked the authorities to stop harassing traders.

Published in Dawn, August 26th, 2020