Mian Muhammed Ahmed, Patron in-chief, Usman Ahmed, President and Abdul Rasheed Jan Mohammed, Vice President, Shakil Ashfaq, Chairman Law Committee along with Managing Committee of Bin Qasim Association of Trade & Industry (BQATI) expressed their concerns over persistent dispute between the Pakistan Vanaspati Manufacturers Association (PVMA) and Edible Oil Carriage Contractors Association which has completely halted the supply of edible oil from the Ports.
Usman Ahmed has briefed the members that since last few months a new menace has come up in Bin Qasim Industrial Zone which is a source of great concern and anxiety to us and the foreigners working at Port Qasim Industrial area. Law and order situation of Bin Qasim area is deteriorating due to ongoing dispute between the PVMA and the Edible oil carriage contractors association.
Around 200 to 300 oil tankers are parked on National Highway and main PQA road. This affects our valued members industrialists, foreign investors, traders, foreign engineers and staff working in Port Qasim Industrial Zone. Usman Ahmed informed that on February17, 2012, four NLC oil tankers carrying edible oil from Port Qasim to up country were set on fire on the National Highway, which turned into battleground. . This incident has created a lot of panic in the area, especially for foreign engineers and technical advisors working inside the port industrial zone.
These events have re-emphasised the need to implement strict and additional security measures to minimise the risk of criminal activities on National Highway, PQA roads and protect the infrastructure and manpower of Port Qasim Industries. Mian Muhammed Ahmed also briefed that at the time when industrial production needs to be boosted up to help the economy, incidents like these will act as serious deterrent to investors local as well as foreign.-PR