LAHORE, Feb 1: City District Government Lahore squads on Wednesday lodged FIRs against 50 liquefied petroleum gas dealers and seized 12 cylinders and 24 pumps during an operation against illegal decanting.
Eight special teams constituted by the district coordination officer took action against LPG dealers during checking of shops and distribution points in Ichhra, Lytton Road, Mozang, Makkah Colony, Mughalpura, Bhabhra, Naseerabad, GT Road, Shalamar Link Road, Multan Road, Bund Road, Ravi Road, Ghaziabad and Sabzazar.
Most of the dealers closed their shops on learning about the raids. Rickshaw and pickup drivers using LPG had to face a great difficulty in refilling of their cylinders as a result.
LPG Dealers Association chairman Irfan Khokhar, criticizing the district government for harassing the dealers and distributors, said the raids had caused inconvenience to rickshaw and pickup drivers in procurement of gas.
He said the association did not support decanting, but the operation against the LPG dealers and distributors was illegal and should be stopped. The district government should take the association into confidence on the subject.
He said a meeting of the association executive committee would be held on Thursday to discuss the situation.
Meanwhile, City District Government’s squads fined 60 drivers for plying motorcycle-rickshaws on six roads of the city on the first day of a ban on Wednesday.
The squads fined 28 rickshaw drivers on GT Road, 13 on Multan Road, 11 on Allama Iqbal Road and eight on Jail Road.
DCO Mian Ijaz has constituted 12 squads headed by DO (environment) Tariq Zaman Khan and Staff Officer Sheikh Farid Ahmad for checking operation of motorcycle-rickshaws on six major roads from 9am to 10pm.
The CDG has banned the operation of motorcycle-rickshaws on GT Road, The Mall, Jail Road, Ferozepur Road, Allama Iqbal Road and Multan Road under the provisions of Section 144 of CrPC.
WORKSHOP: A three-day World Trade Organization workshop on construction and engineering services will be held from Feb 6 here at the Nespak House.
Nespak managing director Karamatullah Chaudhry will inaugurate the workshop.
Selected professionals from across the country will participate in the workshop. Experts will speak on various aspects of WTO such as “Marakash Agreement; trade in service; international property rights etc.”
The workshop deliberations will primarily be focused on services sector and more precisely on the construction and engineering services.