Pakistan Shifts Diesel Transport to Railways Amid Protest-Related Road Closures

KARACHI: Pakistan has begun transporting diesel by rail to its northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province after road closures implemented ahead of a planned opposition march disrupted freight movement. The contingency measure, announced by the railways ministry on Saturday, aims to prevent interruptions to fuel supplies.

The decision followed warnings from goods transporters on Thursday that restrictions imposed ahead of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party’s planned September 27 march on Islamabad were disrupting supply chains. Although PTI postponed the protest until October 4 on Friday, authorities had already restricted key routes.

“On the directives of Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, Pakistan Railways has commenced the transportation of diesel by rail to ensure its timely supply to PSO depots,” the ministry said in a statement, referring to Pakistan State Oil.

A freight train carrying 750,000 liters of diesel from Rawalpindi has already reached Peshawar Division, while another carrying one million liters from Mahmood Kot in Punjab’s Muzaffargarh district was scheduled to arrive Saturday night.

Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik directed officials at a Thursday meeting to prepare for potential interruptions to petroleum transportation due to road closures or security concerns. Pakistan Railways committed to making the maximum number of train wagons available to transport high-speed diesel, with particular emphasis on maintaining supplies to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The PTI organized the protest march to demand the release of its founding leader and former prime minister, Imran Khan, who has been incarcerated since August 2023 and faces multiple convictions and charges that he and his party contend are politically motivated. The government denies targeting him for political reasons.

Despite the postponement until October 4 following a meeting of the party’s political committee, a senior PTI leader indicated the timing remains flexible. “We can protest sooner or even a few days after,” said PTI leader Zulfikar Bukhari. “The ball is in our court.”

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