Finance Minister Syed Naveed Qamar, while presenting the Federal Budget 2008-09 on June 11 before the National Assembly, proposed reduction of custom duty on CNG buses by 50 percent, it must have been taken as glad tidings by the long wearied commuters. For, as the minister himself pointed out in no uncertain terms, the step was being taken to facilitate the travelling public and also to protect the fast depleting infrastructure.
This should have been all the more welcome since only six days earlier a Pakistani company incorporated in China was reported to have shown interest in the manufacture of CNG buses in Karachi.
Small wonder, taking the new government's initiative as a breath of fresh air, Malik Zaheer-ul-Islam, Executive District Officer (EDO), Mass Transit, told this newspaper that due to the increase in the prices of petrol and diesel in the international market, transport sector had come under tremendous pressure, as old and rickety diesel buses plying without proper maintenance were badly damaging the environment in almost every city, especially, in Karachi where people, exposed to contaminated air, had been falling victim to various ailments too.
So, as he put it, in order to address the issues of fuel price and environmental degradation, the import of CNG-run buses had been awaiting serious attention. As such, he saw the proposed 50 percent cut in customs duty on the import of CNG-buses, as an encouragement to the private sector. He also noted, and rightly so, that it will ensure substantial reduction in the cost of running a CNG-bus service, thereby enabling commuters to travel in an environment-friendly transport service at affordable fare.
Again, since the City District Government Karachi, (CDGK), along with the provincial government, has been involved in these efforts, earliest possible initiation of CNG-run bus service, Karachiites would be the principal beneficiaries of the long awaited opportunity, thus paving the way for its extension to other cities.
Now that the Federal government has also shown keen interest in the project it will be worth watching the whole process in the light of its performance in Karachi. However, in so far as the Karachi project is concerned, the Mass Transit EDO said that a request for proposals (RfPs) would be published anew in the newspapers so as to speedily proceed with it.