CNG stations announce closure against gas tariff hike

PESHAWAR: All Pakistan CNG Association Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Wednesday announced closure of the gas stations across the province in protest against the raise in the gas tariff.

Speaking at a protest rally here, the association provincial president Fazal Muqeem Khan said that the raise in the tariff would not only affect the CNG sector but would also negatively impact the lives of common citizens.

The CNG stations owners blocked the University Road for some time. They were holding banners against the government decision to raise the gas tariff. They criticized the government for raising 200 percent raise in the gas tariff.

They said that the inflation had already affected businesses and general public while the gas tariff would further increase inflation. The protesters said that this decision would destroy the small businesses.

The protesters said that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had been treated unfairly in regards to the gas distribution, saying that the government would deprive the resident of the province of their own natural resource.

He said that the recent decision indicated that the government wanted to force the CNG stations to close down. He warned of protest if the federal government did not withdraw the decision.