• Decision comes after marathon weekend meeting, hosted by Sindh governor
• Certain matters ‘addressed immediately’; other issues requiring cabinet nod, legislative changes to be taken up in due course
• Centre seeks 15 days to review demand to withdraw daily fuel price revisions
• Transporters’ rep claims six out of eight demands for Punjab ‘accepted’; Sindh okays shifting their operations to new truck stand within a year
KARACHI: After observing a nine-day wheel-jam, the country’s goods transporters announced on Sunday they were ending their strike “in the greater national interest” following the acceptance of some of their demands.
Speaking to reporters after marathon consultations at Governor House, All Pakistan Goods Transport Association President Malik Shehzad Akbar said the government had asked for 15 days to address their demand regarding daily fuel price changes, adding that transporters would prefer fuel prices that shifted on a fortnightly or monthly basis.
He also said that many of their demands had been accepted “to a certain extent”, adding that committees had been formed to continue consultations on other matters.
The announcement came after a high-level meeting, hosted by Sindh Governor Nehal Hashmi, which saw officials from across the country — including the federal, Punjab and Sindh governments — converge on Karachi over the weekend.
According to a statement from Governor House, the meeting was attended by Federal Minister for Communications Abdul Aleem Khan, Sindh Senior Minister Saeed Ghani, Punjab Minister for Transport Bilal Akbar and Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab. The federal communications secretary, inspector general of motorway police, and chairman of the National Highway Authority (NHA) were also in attendance, alongside other relevant officials.
“There is an extraordinary situation, not just in Pakistan but across the whole region,” Governor Hashmi told reporters after the meeting, referring to the ongoing conflict between the US and Iran.
He noted that whatever social and economic circumstances stemmed from this situation — affecting the realms of trade, commerce and communications — were not limited to Pakistan, and were being felt around the world.
Noting that PM Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir were working to give the people as much relief as possible, he hailed the progress in talks with the transporters’ association, adding that all stakeholders must work through mutual consultation and understanding.
Federal Minister for Communications Abdul Aleem Khan reaffirmed the transporters’ stance, saying that some immediate matters had been resolved during Sunday’s sitting, while other issues would be taken up by the relevant committees that had been formed.
Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab also committed to resolving the transporters’ issues, on behalf of the Sindh government. Some issues have to be resolved jointly with the Karachi Port Trust, he said, while others would involve legislative changes that would be taken up at the relevant forum.
Transporters’ demands
In his media talk, Mr Akbar noted that transporters across the country had been on strike for nine days.
No one wants to strike, it is always a last-resort, he said, adding that all previous negotiations with the government had yielded a stalemate.
Recalling a similar strike in December last year, Mr Akbar claimed that at the time, the provincial and federal governments had also made commitments, which were not subsequently followed through.
He said that their association had repeatedly reminded the governments of these issues, but were forced to opt for a strike when faced by daily fuel price hikes, accompanied by an increase in toll and withholding taxes, among other issues.
Talking about their demands, Mr Akbar said that some of their issues had been “resolved immediately”, while matters that require approval from the cabinet would be settled within 15-20 days.
He claimed that six out of their eight demands for the Punjab government had also been accepted, while committees had been formed to address the remaining two issues.
On withholding taxes, he said they were assured by the communications minister he would raise the issue with Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, and that a committee would be formed to settle the issue.
On toll taxes, he said the communications minister had formed a committee that would examine the issue, and claimed the government had held out an assurance not to raise toll rates further.
Mr Akbar also claimed that assurances had been extended on the issue of axle-load for large freight vehicles, such as 10-wheeler trucks.
He said the federal communications minister had assured them that overloading would be “controlled at the source”, and that the law would be implemented across the country. He also pledged transporters’ support for the axle-load regime, saying that they wanted to operate under the ambit of the law.
Meanwhile, he claimed the Sindh government had assured them of shifting operations to a new truck stand within one year, and that Maritime Affairs Minister Junaid Anwar had helped with solving their parking problem at the port.
Imran Ayub in Karachi and Syed Irfan Raza in Islamabad also contributed to this report
Published in Dawn, August 17th, 2026
