KARACHI, April 12: The trade and industry organisations have not been compensated yet by the Sindh government against the huge losses they suffered during the four-day unrest after the assassination of Benazir Bhutto on December 27.

The Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) after having collected data from 92 different trade and industrial organisations had passed on the details of the losses to the Sindh Industries Caretaker Minister Arif Ali Khan Abbasi in the third week of January.

According to the KCCI data the small and large business and industrial units had suffered a loss of Rs6 billion in various acts of violence. The Sindh government was supposed to hand over the details of losses to the Issani Commission, which was set up by the federal caretaker government.

The Sindh government had actually initiated the idea of compensating the losses suffered by the businessmen and industrialists, but later there has been no follow up call from the government.

Karachi Wholesalers Grocers Association (KWGA) chairman Anis Majeed said after the submission of KCCI data, the Sindh government after verification exercise had issued various forms for factories, godowns, shops, vehicles etc. for compensation of losses, but then general elections came in February and since then the matter has been in the cold storage.

He said the association would soon give a wake up call to the Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah in this regard.

The loot and plunder of rice, pulses, sugar, wheat and dry dates from the godowns situated near Lyari had been the highest as 32 traders, commission agents, brokers and others lost essential items worth Rs35.2 million, he said.

Korangi Association of Trade and Industry (KATI) chairman Shaikh Fazl-e-Jalil said that members had individually submitted the claims before the caretaker government because the area had suffered heavy losses.

A total of 150 vehicles including trawlers loaded with items, seven bank branches, four petrol pumps and 19 industries were looted and burnt. The KATI had estimated a loss of Rs20 billion.

Despite repeated attempts, the caretaker government had insisted that it would be better to take up the matter with the new government, he said.

Even the KATI had taken up the issue with President Musharraf in a meeting at Governor House in February and they were assured of a quick reimbursement of losses but nothing so far had happened. KATI will soon take up the matter with the new Sindh government, Jalil said. Tahir Javed, Director Sales and Marketing at Afzal Motors Private Limited, said that the company had reported a loss of Rs75 million to the Sindh government as well as to the federal government due to burning and looting of its warehouse, offices, building, plant, spare parts, vehicles and machinery.

Despite various reminders to the relevant departments, the company has not been paid any compensation, he said. Later, the Finance Ministry had sought the company’s opinion as to how the amount could be compensated.

He said that the Ministry was asked either to provide monetary compensation or give exemption equivalent to the cost of imported parts and accessories used in the assembly of Daewoo bus and trucks. But the Finance Ministry also backed away, he added.