No joke

Yet the thing to be dreaded is that the strike seems to be taking on a domino effect. Some other sections belonging to the transport mafia countrywide have already given fresh calls. A good part of the public transport establishment in Lahore plans to take vehicles off the roads today, caring little for office-goers, students and other commuters. Since these transporters are in no way linked to the strike in Karachi, they should be dealt with severely.

Though it is somewhat difficult to take action against the powerful vehicle mafia, the situation calls for the government to act firmly. The vehicle-owners' genuine grievances must be removed. Like other sections of society they have been badly hit by the recent price hike and the oil crisis. Their eight-point charter of demands which ncludes reducing the diesel price, lessening the toll tax and compensation for the vehicles burnt by miscreants on December 27 in Karachi, etc, deserves serious consideration. There is no time to waste.