QUETTA: The Pakistan Coal Suppliers Association and Good Transport Association announced on Wednesday that they would stop the supply of coal across the country from Balochistan if they were not provided with adequate protection.

Speaking at a joint press conference, the President of Balochistan Goods Transport Asso­ciation Noor Ahmed Kakar, and the General Secretary of Coal Suppliers Association Muhammad Din Sanz­arkhail, said that unk­nown armed men punctured the tyres of 42 trucks carrying coal from Harnai and Duki coal fields to Punjab and other areas of the country.

The armed men held up all 42 trucks at gunpoint in the Charat area on Harnai road and opened fire. They not only punctured tyres but also damaged the trucks.

They said that coal suppliers and transporters were paying Rs230 per tonne to the Frontier Corps for providing security to the trucks transporting coal to other cities.

“The firing incidents took place on June 1 on Harnai road, not far from a security checkpoint,” they said, adding that the government has failed to provide security to the trucks and coal suppliers.

They said that firing incidents and even blasts had become commonplace in the Harnai and Duki areas.

They said that they would halt coal supply starting from June 13 if the elements involved in the firing were not arrested and if permanent security arrangements were not implemented in the area.

Published in Dawn, June 8th, 2023