Director of Pak-Afghan Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PAJCCI), Zia-ul-Haq Sarhadi, has welcomed the decision of the customs department to allow cross-stuffing of Afghan and Uzbek cargo at Karachi Port.
This decision is expected to benefit the businessmen dealing in Pak-Afghan trade who have been facing extra charges due to delays in the return of containers to the shipping company.
In the past, containers carrying goods took several days to reach Afghanistan and return back to Karachi port, which resulted in huge fines on importers under the head of detention charges. With the new permission for cross-stuffing, the containers will be offloaded at Karachi, and the goods will be transferred to trucks for onward transportation to Afghanistan.
Zia Sarhadi has also urged the Goods Documentation (GD) filing at Aza Khel dry Port in Nowshera district, which would help in making Aza Khel dry port operational, besides creating employment opportunities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by providing livelihood to more than 270 custom clearing agents.
He has suggested that cross-stuffing facility should also be allowed at Aza Khel Dry Port in Nowshera, and cargoes in bulk quantities like sugar, wheat, and urea be transported in railway wagons, which would help in reducing transportation costs for businessmen and generating revenue for Railways.
Overall, the decision to allow cross-stuffing of Afghan and Uzbek cargo at Karachi Port is expected to have a positive impact on Pak-Afghan trade, and the suggestions made by Director PAJCCI to further improve the trade process should be given due consideration by the authorities concerned.
