The Balochistan government has announced that it would implement the convoy system to ensure the safe transportation of goods vehicles from the Taftan border to Quetta and other parts of the country.
Hamza Shafqaat, the Additional Chief Secretary (Home) and Quetta Commissioner Shahzeb Khan Kakar announced this at a meeting of representatives of Quetta Chamber of Commerce and Industry, All Balochistan Business Alliance, transporters, and traders.
Citizens’, transporters’, and passengers’ lives and property protection is the first priority of the government, officials said. They also said that compensation to the families of the people killed in the recent Kalat incident had been started.
Repeated attacks on cargo trucks, LPG tankers, buses and other vehicles, and an increase in robberies on highways were a concern for business leaders and transport representatives. Such incidents have led to the fear of importers, exporters, transporters and the public, as well as loss of infrastructure like bridges, which have further hampered transport, they stated.
The government officials, on their part, had pledged to boost security along the national highways of Balochistan. The convoy system is expected to be supported by the Pakistan Army, Frontier Corps (FC), and Anti-Terrorism Force (ATF) to gain access to transport routes and block any further attacks, they said.
The officials stressed that the security measures will be implemented on the highways of the province and not just on certain routes. They also pledged they would deal with the families instantly to compensate those of seven members of a single family killed in Pishin, and also called off a separate meeting with the Bus Transport Association to discuss its complaints.
The government has asked transporters, traders and other stakeholders to take joint action to create confidence and security in the road network of Balochistan.
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