January 14, 2009	Wednesday	Muharram 16, 1430

KARACHI, Jan 13: Wholesalers and traders of vegetables and fruit on the main Super Highway have decided to shut down their businesses on Friday in protest against the rising occurrence of robberies and the extortion of money by armed men said to be linked with political parties.

The traders say various letters have been sent to Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani by the market committee’s administrator requesting the authorities to control these activities, but no serious efforts have been made so far.

As a result these kinds of acts continue to occur within the market and from Sohrab Goth to Sabzi Mandi.

Speaking at a press conference at the Karachi Press Club on Tuesday, President of Falahi Anjuman Wholesale Vegetable Market Haji Shahjehan and Chairman of Karachi Wholesale Fresh Fruits Merchants and Commission Agents Association Mohammad Zahid Awan said if the government failed to control lawlessness the associations would shut all wholesale markets from January 25 for an indefinite period.

Mr Awan claimed “there has been a substantial increase in unlawful activities since the offices of the political parties have been set up in the Mandi.”

“The situation has worsened, as traders/wholesalers have started receiving letters from the groups of armed men demanding Rs200,000-500,000 and threatening of dire consequences if they do not comply,” he said.

This kind of threat had forced people in the market to close down their businesses for one day, he said, hoping that this would attract the government’s attention.

He said that groups of armed men were usually active after Maghrib prayers till Fajr, and their victims were the traders and growers who arrived with loaded trucks and cash-in-hand from various up-country destinations.

He alleged that instead of curbing the criminal acts the area police were providing effective back-up to those groups.

Haji Shahjehan said the wholesalers would not allow the trucks and vans loaded with commodities (arriving from up-country) to enter the Mandi from 4pm on January 15 to the same time on January 16.

He said that growers and suppliers of commodities from Sindh and Punjab were being informed not to dispatch vegetables and fruit from January 14.

Around 200-250 trucks of fruit and 500-700 trucks of vegetables (worth Rs300-400 millions) arrive daily at the wholesale market, where around 15,000-16,000 workers and labourers are employed.

He said that typically 15-20 armed men in a group entered the wholesale market and started plundering traders. “Around 40-50 per cent of wholesalers have virtually suspended their trading for fear of losing their lives at the hands of armed men,” he added.

He said a wholesaler had been looted at least four times in a month and hundreds of such incidents occurred in the market every month.

“Even the traders arriving from the city have to face the same ordeal between Sohrab Goth to Mandi,” he said.

Mr Shahjehan said the market committee collected millions of rupees annually in the shape of market fees from the traders. The committee was legally bound to use these funds for maintenance and other rehabilitation work, he said.

For the last eight years, the market had been lacking basic facilities like water, sewerage system, concrete roads and security services, he said.