SCCI says export goods trucks clearance at Torkham very slow

PESHAWAR: The Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) President Maqsood Anwar Pervaiz has expressed concern over the slow-paced clearance of export goods trucks at Pak-Afghan border at Torkham.

Presiding over a meeting, the SCCI chief pointed out that long queues of trucks and containers from the Ring Road Peshawar to Torkham border could be seen as the clearance process was very slow. He said there was a lack of facilities on the other side of the border as well, deploring that the government and relevant departments were reluctant to resolve the issue amicably. Maqsood Anwar was critical of the federal government inaction and mysterious silence over this serious issue.

“This inaction is negatively impacting the economy by affecting the exports to Afghanistan and other countries,” he added. The SCCI chief said exports to Afghanistan via Torkham had witnessed a declining trend despite the opening of Pak-Afghan border round-the-clock. Maqsood Anwar said the business community and exporters had never faced such situation even at the time when the Torkham border used to remain open for 8 hours. He said exports had dropped instead of showing improvement after the 24/7 operation.

The SCCI chief lamented that food and perishable items loaded on to trucks/containers were going rotten, inflicting huge financial losses on the exporters. He said it was disturbing to note that no government department was ready to take responsibility and resolve the issue. Instead, he said, the departments were tossing responsibility.

Maqsood Anwar said if there were any irritants on the Afghanistan side, it should be taken up with that government to find a permanent solution to the issue to end the difficulties of the business community and exporters. The trade volume between Pakistan and Afghanistan is already very low and it will dip if the clearance process of export goods trucks/containers was not expedited, he feared. The SCCI urged Prime Minister Imran Khan, his Advisor on Commerce, Textile, Industry, Production and Investment Abdul Razak Dawood and other relevant officials to take effective measures to resolve the issue.