LAHORE: Trade between India and Pakistan through the only Integrated Check-Post at Wagah-Attari border has come to the lowest level after laborers on Indian side went on a strike over the payment issues.
According to official sources of Customs Today, laborers working on Indian side have suspended their work since Wednesday.
The labour, working for loading and unloading of goods on trucks, has refused to work and blocked the passage of trucks carrying Pakistani gypsum after Indian authorities withdrew charges on consignments that did not involve manual handling,” Customs personnel at Wagah told Customs Today.
Over a five-kilometer long queue of the trucks can be seen on the GT Road on Pakistani side while situation on Indian side is no different except for the fact that lines of vehicles awaiting entry are somewhat shorter.
Custom officials added that the Indian laborers are not happy with the official revision of charges implemented on September 11, 2017.
The Centre Warehousing Corporation (CWC), appointed as custodian of the ICP by the Land Ports Authority of India (LPAI), stated that no handling tariff would be charged against the loose cargo (gypsum) that arrives in the vehicles fitted with hydraulic unloading system,” the officials said, quoting a circular issued by Indian authorities.
They added that similarly there will be no handling charges in case of trucks being exported directly where no customs examination was required. “When the laborers learned about the circular, which took effect from September 11, they stopped loading and unloading the consignments from midday of September 9 after the failure of their negotiation with the Centre Warehousing Corporation,” another official said.
A gypsum exporter from Pakistan said the importers are paying almost Rs60 per ton on the import of gypsum as labour handling charges, but it did not involve any labor. “Gypsum is transported to the ICP in hydraulic dumpers. The drivers dump it at importer’s designated place at the Integrated Check-Post,” he said.
It may be mentioned here that importers have been paying almost Rs2300 to Rs2400 per dumper since 2012. The Indian importers believe that it is an injustice to pay handling charges on gypsum.
