The two-day holiday, announced as part of energy conservation plan by the government, has led to a potentially big controversy in the ports and shipping industry with Karachi Port being the first to face the brunt in the face of stoppage of cargo handling on Thursday.
According to sources, the cargo handling at Karachi Port, including the two container terminals, could not be commenced on time at 7pm for the night shift due to the dock workers' strike. They said on Thursday evening thousands of Karachi Dock Labour Board's workers gathered at KDLB's booking office at West Wharf and protested for not being paid overtime for the recently-announced public holiday on Saturdays.
The sources told Business Recorder that cargo handling at over a dozen ships could not be started for at least three hours by 10pm at Karachi Port, including the two container terminals, PICT and KICT. Some 17 vessels, which according to KPT's daily shipping activity report, carried oil, cement, rice, coal, jute, and containerised and general cargo, had to wait for hours because of the stand-off. The sources said normally the stevedoring companies complete the booking of KDLB working gangs for night shift by 4:30pm, but the booking could not be started till a belated interference of the concerned officials at around 10pm.
The labourers are said to have demanded either an off or extra payment on Saturdays, besides the removal of a parking from the KDLB's Medical Center and the opening of Gate Number 18 for the workers' entry inside the port at West Wharf. Interestingly, whereas the strike paralysed almost the entire cargo handling and shipping activity at the country's largest seaport for at least three hours, the concerned authorities watched the crisis to develop only.
"No one from KPT, KICT, PICT or the Board is ready to sit with us," Abdullah Dawood, General Secretary CBA, KDLB, told Business Recorder. Malik Muhammad Safdar, Executive Officer and Secretary of KDLB was the only government official who negotiated with the dockers.
While Muhammad A. Rajpar was the first KDLB board member who along with some KPT officials turned up and got the matter resolved through what the workers claimed nodding to all of their demands. "They agreed to accept our all demands... we have resumed booking after assurance of Rajpar," Abdullah said. However, Safdar denied the claim, saying that the booking has been resumed while talks are on for determining the fate of demands.