RAWALPINDI:
Following the end of a six-day strike and lockdown in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), trade and transport between Rawalpindi and AJK have fully resumed.
With routes reopened, all wholesale markets in Rawalpindi have returned to normal operations, and transport businesses have regained momentum.
Goods transport that had been halted since Saturday is now back on the roads, and wholesale trade has surged across Rawalpindi’s major markets.
On the first day after the strike ended, 162 small and large vehicles carrying pulses, sugar, flour, rice, ghee, oil, vegetables, and fruits departed from Rawalpindi for various AJK cities.
Eighty-five goods trucks stranded in different parts of AJK during the strike also returned to Rawalpindi transport depots.
Labourers and helpers associated with goods transport and wholesale markets have resumed work, expressing relief at the restoration of their livelihoods.
There was a significant rush of Kashmiri traders and shopkeepers in Rawalpindi’s wholesale markets as they purchased essential items in bulk.
Goods Transport Federation Secretary General Fareed Abbasi said, “After a complete shutdown of goods movement to AJK for a week, the roads are open again, and business is back on track.”
Helpers Ashiq Mahmood and Gulzar Khan said they had survived six to seven days without work, living on borrowed meals and tea from hotels.
“Today’s earnings helped us clear our debts; we’re happy to be back to work,” they added.
Asghar Raja, a wholesale dealer in Ganjmandi, said Kashmiri traders have been buying grocery items like sugar, flour, oil, and snacks in large quantities, benefiting both buyers and sellers.
Goods transporters have raised fares by 5 to 10 per cent for AJK-bound consignments.
