The All Pakistan CNG Association (APCNGA) has called off its strike in Lahore, Gujranwala and Multan until Friday, when it meets with the managing director of the Sui Northern Gas Pipeline Limited and the petroleum secretary.
The CNG stations in the Punjab have been on strike for two days and are demanding that the government give them a regular gas supply. Gas supply to CNG stations is suspended for two days every week.
APCNGA chairman Ghayas Paracha said the suspension of the strike was a concession to the public, which has been unable to buy CNG for four days, and as an appreciation of the prime minister taking notice of their demands. But he also appeared to be using it as a tool to strengthen his position for negotiations with the government.
“If our demands are accepted in Friday’s meeting with the gas management committee then we will call off the strike throughout Punjab. If the meeting ends with no result then the strike will immediately be back on in these three regions,” he said.
“Now the ball is in the government’s court. Does it want to give relief to gas consumers or not? Our only demand is that the CNG sector should be free from gas load shedding as we faced this throughout winter,” Paracha added.
Earlier on Thursday, the APCNGA held a sit-in for five hours in front of Governor’s House. Traffic on The Mall remained suspended for this period. The sit-in was called off after talks between APCNGA vice chairman Captain Shuja and Governor Sardar Latif Khosa. Traffic on the roads was more sparse than usual, as many commuters who rely on CNG parked their cars and motorbikes at home and tried Lahore’s decrepit public transport system. Buses were not available in some areas because Daewoo, a major transport company, has suspended its intra-city bus routes. Residents of western parts of Lahore like Johar Town and Wapda Town suffered the most, since there are no other bus companies operating in those areas.
Arsalan Zafar, who was waiting for a bus at Maulana Shukat Ali Road when he spoke to The Express Tribune, said that he usually travelled by car but had to use public transport because of the strike. “If I fill my car with petrol that costs Rs1,500 for two days’ fuel and I cannot afford that, so I thought I’d try a bus,” he said. “I’ve been waiting half an hour. No bus yet.”
Zafar said that rickshaws were also charging too much these days because of the high petrol prices. He blamed the government for the strike. He said that two days of gas load shedding each week meant that on the days CNG was available, there were long queues at the pump.
After the announcement that the strike was being suspended, long queues formed at CNG stations. “You never know when they will be closed again so it’s best to get it now,” said one customer waiting in line. The lines of vehicles from some stations stretched to the road, causing traffic jams.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 15th, 2011.
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