The businesses are already facing tough challenges and further increase in POL prices and power tariff, will create enormous inflation and great pressure on the business activities, said Mahfooz Elahi, President of Islamabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry addressing an emergent meeting of the representatives of various markets and transport association. The business community highly criticized massive increase in POL prices up to Rs7.11 linking it with the international market. They said that government always increases prices in several rupees, while decrease in tariff is very negligible that results a huge financial burden on general consumers. Mahfooz Elahi said increase in the petrol and diesel prices put a direct impact on the transportation cost for the general masses and the prices of all commodities are increased in the market. He said that inflation has already crossed 20 percent and further increase in petroleum and power tariff, will make the lives of people more miserable He said that due to high cost of doing business, ratio of sick industries is on the rise and 2 percent increase in power tariff, will make industries more uncompetitive in the international market. He said that especially exporters suffer a great deal because of continuous fluctuation in tariffs. For the last couple of years, phenomenon of increase in power and petroleum prices has become unstoppable that leaves a very negative impact on the economic activity in the country making the lives of common man extremely difficult, he said. The President of ICCI was of the view that government must put a stop on increase in the tariffs and instead of adopting short cut solutions to meet the energy demands, must develop and implement a long term strategy to overcome the energy crises and increase in inflation. He said that government spends a huge amount of foreign exchange to import oil for the generation of electricity but unfortunately, no concrete plan was developed for the generation of electricity from the alternate resources, eventually business community and general public has to become a scape goat of all ill planning. The representatives of the business community, demanded for the withdrawal in increase in power tariff and reduction in increase in POL prices to save the country from further economic damage. They said that nation waits for some relief and does not want to be teased by constant increase in inflation.