Indefinite transport strike: industrialists make alternative arrangement of transport

Indefinite transport strike call given by Karachi Transport Ittehad from March 3 has incited industrialists to start making alternative arrangement of transport to keep their units operative during strike days. Industrialists said that it is not possible for them to sustain production losses in present circumstances. We already suffered huge losses due to power load shedding in industrial areas, he said.
Some of the industrialists have decided not to allow their night shifts to leave the industry while some of them made arrangement of vehicles to carry the workers. Industrialists of Korangi and Federal B industrial areas said that majority of workers live in the vicinity of the industrial areas that they can managed to report on duty incase of strike. However, it is a general trend that majority of them preferred to stay at home and enjoy the day as holiday.
While some of the industrialists of Federal B Area said that majority of units in this industrial area are garments and their employees are women. They can not afford not to allow them to leave the industrial after their shift is over. The only way to keep the industry operative is to provide transport Another industrialist said that units employing women either have their own transport or have contract arrangement of transport
However they fear that the industry may not be able to operate in full swing incase public transport remain off the roads. Even if we managed to keep the units operative still then delivery of goods and transportation of export consignment will come to a stand still. Chairman Korangi Association of Trade and Industry (KATI), Syed Johar Ali Qandhari expressed fear that if pubic transport remains off the roads industry will suffer huge production losses
He also expressed concern that distribution of goods and exports will also come to a stand still if strike is not called off. He said Korangi alone have around 4500 industrial, commercial and service units employing more than one million people and contributing Rs 270 million per day in taxes to the national exchequer. Production and revenue generation will suffer, he added.
Former Chairman Federal B Area Association of Trade and Industry (FBAATI), Shahid Ismail said that industry will definitely suffer production and distribution and exports will be disturbed. He said that industry would remain open and likely to operate with reduced workforce, while production work demand on strength of workers, he added.