FAISALABAD: Activities at the Faisalabad Dry Port are going down as most of the exporters have turned to dry ports in Karachi or other cities to ship their consignments.

Customs Collector Touseef Ahmed Qureshi said this at a meeting with the members of the Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce and Industries on Wednesday.

He said the imports being handled at the facility were of diesel, old machinery and edible oil. He said they were trying to improve the performance of the dry port.

He said cargo and freight trains were a feasible solution for exporters.

Chamber President Rizwan Ashraf said import and export activities on the Faisalabad Dry port had been falling since 2006-07 and it was the need of hours to detect the reasons for sluggish activities at Faisalabad dry port.

Activities at the dry port will help win confidence of the exporters and also increase the government revenue, he added.

He also expressed his reservations over delayed duty drawback claims. He urged the government to release claims pending for years.

The director said the facility of on-sight clearance in factories would be ensured in Faisalabad.

FESCO: Dozens of Faisalabad Electric Supply Company (Fesco) employees staged a protest rally on Wednesday against the proposed privatisation of the company.

The rally was organised by the All Pakistan Wapda Hydro Electric Workers Union and the protesters gathered at the Fesco headquarters on Canal Road.

Driving motorcycles and other vehicles, the workers blocked traffic at Jhal and GTS Chowks and then moved towards the Zila Council.

Unionist Mian Rasheed told Dawn said among 13 distribution companies of the country, Fesco was on top in terms performance. He said line losses of the company were in single digit but the government ignored the facts.

The government should refrain from selling profitable entities, he demanded.

Published in Dawn January 8th , 2014

On a mobile phone? Get the Dawn Mobile App: Apple Store | Google Play