JALALABAD (Pajhwok): Afghan traders have suffered losses of millions of Afghanis due to the closure of the Torkham crossing gate for the past three days, a business body said on Monday.
Pakistani officials have shut the vital Torkham crossing in response to the construction of military installations by Afghan side.
Arafat Muhajir, an official at the Torkham township, told Pajhwok Afghan News that talks for the opening of Torkham crossing with Pakistani officials were underway but the crossing remained shut until now.
He said that the Pakistani side closed the gate because of the construction on the Afghan side of the crossing which the Pakistani side did not allowed. When Afghan forces continued the construction, they closed the gate.
Shakirullah, the acting head of the Nangarhar Chamber of Commerce and Investment (CCI), hundreds of containers and had been stranded on both side of the crossing.
He said: “Each container alone cost an additional $120 per day, and there are also goods (commercial goods) that deteriorate with each passing day, it is not possible to say exactly because the gate is still closed and the figures have not been collected, but millions of Afghanis are lost every day.”
Some Nangarhar businessmen have termed the closure of Torkham crossing against the Afghanistan Pakistan Trade Agreement (APTA).
Haji Zalmai Azeemi, member of the CCI administrative board, said Hundreds of containers and commercial trucks are parked on both sides, including fresh fruits and vegetables, and traders have suffered a lot.
He said: “Until Pakistan separates trade from politics, I don't think Afghan traders will see a better day; these traders are the ones who serve the poor nation of Afghanistan, if they fall from grace, the nation will become even more miserable, the policy needs to be changed and these problems resolved.”
Pakistan has closed the Torkham border gate on various pretexts in the past, causing losses to Afghan traders and causing major inconvenience to travelers and patients.
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