THE van cylinder explosion that led to the death of two students and injured 10 others in a small town near Muzaffargarh on Thursday is just one such incident in a long list of often fatal cylinder blasts. Allegedly, the driver of the school van had stepped outside for a smoke, unaware of the gas leakage. When the van caught fire, the children could not escape, since the doors were locked — not an unusual feature of school transport in Pakistan. The tragedy is not unprecedented. In May 2013, 17 children and a teacher in Gujrat were killed when a faulty gas cylinder burst into flames inside their school bus. Explosions of gas cylinders are frequent in Pakistan largely because of the lack of enforcement of safety standards and procedures. The previous government did not take action against illegal workshops that installed substandard cylinders, with insufficient gas-filling capacity in vehicles. Since December 2016, when the government formally deregulated CNG, there has been no system of checks and balances on the trade of cylinders and kits. Transporters use faulty or expired cylinders in their vehicles, which increases the risk of accidents.

CNG was introduced to Pakistan in the 1990s, at a time when the country’s natural gas reserves were perceived as an unlimited source of fuel. Being locally produced and environmentally friendly, the government encouraged its use as an alternative to diesel and petroleum. Seen as economically viable in comparison to the heavily taxed and constantly fluctuating prices of petroleum, CNG quickly gained popularity with owners of large public-sector vehicles as well as school vans and buses, which could easily accommodate the bulky equipment. According to the Economic Survey (2010-2011), Pakistan became the world’s largest user of CNG, overtaking Iran, Argentina and Brazil. It is necessary to introduce a system of checks and balances. Social concerns cannot be allowed to take a back seat. We are playing with the lives of millions of Pakistanis.

Published in Dawn, September 29th, 2018