Ship-breaking activity at the Gadani Beach is picking up momentum after a break of nearly two decades. According to a press report, 65 merchant vessels recently arrived for scrapping. More are scheduled to come soon. These are mostly cargo ships, whose average life is between 20 and 25 years.
Global recession and an unprecedented increase in commodity prices have rendered some of them idle before time. Pakistan along with India and Bangladesh is one of the world's major ship-breaking centres, mainly because of cheap labour, proximity to the international shipping routes, and also because the occupational safety and health standards are pretty lax, which is a real cause for concern. It may be recalled that in Pakistan ship-breaking became a thriving business in the 1970s through the 90s because of low labour costs and the demand for scrap steel for reprocessing. Unfortunately, in the later period it became a casualty of the then open political confrontation between the two main parties, Pakistan People's Party and Pakistan Muslim League. The PPP government discouraged ship-breaking industry through imposition of heavy duty on the pretext of protecting the Pakistan Steel Mills whereas the general belief was that it had something to do with the PML leadership owned foundries' need for scrap. Those worried about the safety and health issues as well as environmental pollution were happy to see the activity slackening.
The news of revival can only be welcomed since we need the scrap to fulfil our growing reprocessed steel requirements. And also because it has a significant job creation potential. Already those associated with the industry are saying the new ship-breaking business is to produce around half a million tons of scrap for our steel reprocessing industry, and thousands of jobs for the people living off Gadani Beach. It also is a reminder that the government must fulfil its responsibility towards the labour force, which comprises people who are mostly uneducated and hence ignorant about the hazards the work involves.
The workers must be provided with the necessary protection equipment. Special care needs to be taken in the handling of dangerous materials, such as carcinogenic asbestos, which is retrieved and recycled for reuse. The relevant laws concerning safety and health issues must be implemented strictly through a proper system, like in the case of industrial zones. Last but not the least, the government must also ensure that the toxic substances from the vessels are not allowed to drain off into the sea, polluting its water and harming the marine life.