Pakistan closes Steel Mill at Karachi..
Even as the political scenario of Pakistan is becoming grim, the country faces the problem of a slowdown in steel scrap production. This can have a negative impact on its economy. The ship breaking industry of the nation is undergoing a phase of stagnation that shows no sign of improving.
This is due to the fact that steel scrap production in the country has come to a halt. A recent statement issued by the ship breakers says that after re-rollable steel import has been given the green signal, the demand for regional steel scraps have plummeted seriously. This can have serious consequences. The possibilities of large scale job loss and unemployment looms large over the ship breaking industry of the country.
Dewan Muhammad Rizwan Farooqui, who is the President of PSBA or Pakistan Ship Breakers’ Association, said in his statement that more than 50 mid and small sized ships are in Gadani shipyard. They have been anchored there for the last 6 to 8 months. Ever since steel import has been allowed the crisis has further deepened. The PSBA president also said that the ship breakers had set a target of making 500,000 LDT steel scraps initially. The demand of the scrap metals and ship billets had taken an upward surge since the previous year. But the situation has reversed after the news of import has been revealed.
The industry is suffering for the downfall in engineering and construction sectors as it has impacted the demand for steel. At the same time the diminishing global prices of raw steel has reduced the requirement of the industry sharply. Farooqui informed that as of now close to 7,000 workers earn their daily bread from working at the Gadani dockyard. However with the decrease in the workflow, several workers are likely to have their jobs terminated. This would further have an impact on the economic scenario of the country that is already severely plagued by the current recession.
The PSBA president said that the ship breaking industry of Pakistan made 152,260 LDT steel along with metal scraps in 2007. It was acquired from dismantling 34 ships at the Gadani dockyard. In the previous 10 years the industry had seen an unprecedented growth. The industry is a major contributor to the economy of Pakistan. That is why its decline has made the veterans worried.
Farooqui also pointed out the various problems that plague the lives of the workers of the industry. The dearth of required infrastructure facility like roads, healthcare and utility like drinking water and electricity have made the lives of the workers difficult. He recalled that in the 1980s the ship breaking industry of Pakistan reached its acme. It had a workforce of 30000 people at that time and was seen as the largest industry of the world.