Karachiites block MA Jinnah Road in protest over CNG crisis

Distressed by the scarcity of compressed natural gas (CNG) for their vehicles, citizens on Tuesday morning blocked MA Jinnah Road, considered the main artery of the city. The portion of MA Jinnah Road from Gurumandir to Numaish Chowrangi was barricaded with rickshaws and taxis for at least four hours, after the owner of a CNG station ordered his staff to close down the fuel station late at night while people were still waiting in long queues of vehicles for their turn for hours. Meantime, massive traffic jams were seen on other main roads including Shahra-e-Faisal owing to long rows of motorists at the CNG stations, as a large number of CNG stations have been closed down in protest.
The CNG stations’ owners asserted that they could not sell the fuel gas on the cut prices as sanctioned by the Supreme Court (SC). The citizens lashed out at the politicians who had raised the slogan of environment protection and urged the citizens to transfer their vehicles on to CNG. The citizens complained that now the same people have created an artificial shortage of gas, thus depriving the common man from earning a respectable livelihood.
It should be mentioned here that on October 25, the apex court declared the formula to link the CNG price with oil prices as “illegal”. The court also directed the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) to announce revised prices minus surcharges. The OGRA subsequently announced the reduced prices of the CNG. However, the CNG stations in opposition to the newly announced prices unilaterally started shutting down their fuel pumps as a sign of protest. Reacting to this, the government announced it would fine and even seal stations that were shutting down business in protest.