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ISLAMABAD: Normal trade activities between Pakistan and China are likely to resume from today, Monday as olympics fever that remained grasped all and sundry from August 8 to 24 concluded on Sunday.

Chairman Sust Dry Port Ali Afsar says that the port is the centre of Pak-China trade.The bilateral trade between two brotherly countries is extremely slow due to olympics gala in Beijing. Only three containers used to come daily from China in the last fortnight instead of hundreds of containers daily as compared to corresponding period last year.

As a security measure the Chinese government was issuing only limited visas to the traders now a days.The situation is likely to normalise from Monday as olympics are being concluded on Sunday.

Pak-China Sust Port Company Private Limited is a joint venture company between Sinotrans and Silk Route Dry Port Trust. The port is constructed at a height of 9300 feet above sea level and is at the distance of approximately 850 km from the federal capital, Islamabad, and at the brink of Karakorum Highway (KKH).

The Port links the rich industrial provinces of Kasghar and Sinkyang via the Northern Areas to the commercial markets of Pakistan. It is the first formal dry port linking the two friendly countries through a land route for the facilitation of cross border trade. In the future the dry port will also link markets in China to the Middle East via the Gwadar Sea Port which provides transshipment facilities.

The port came into operation in 2005 and is built on an area of 301 kanals. Before the establishment of the port only 3 containers could be cleared in a day, but after its establishment up to 400 containers can be cleared each day. The dry port has helped curb the smuggling of Chinese goods by 90 percent, and theft has been minimized to 5 percent. 60 percent revenue of port is earned by China while 40 percent is going to Pakistan.

At present the port remains open from May to December.The dry port incorporates modern facilities and technology to facilitate the speedy clearance of goods including warehousing facilities, electronic weighing scales and bridges, proper offices for customs and excise, declaration halls for traders and the proper offloading and loading of trucks.

The port has 32 offices which include those for customs, traders and the Sust Dry Port Authority. The dry port also has a hotel consisting of 24 rooms to facilitate traders. The facility contains closed warehouses built to accommodate 50 (65 Feet) Chinese containers and semi closed warehouses which hold a capacity of 100 (40 Feet) Chinese containers.

The port also has small machinery like fork lifters and cranes on the premises. The port has a full time staff of 120 people and 3,000 daily laborers.

Major items which are imported through the port from China include shoes, garments, silks, stationary items, toys, crockery, imitation jewelry, decoration pieces, auto parts, watches and electronics. Major items which are exported from Pakistan through the port are dry fruit, leather goods, prayer mats, and marble and brass/onyx decoration pieces

Sust is also visitor’s heaven due to it enchanting beauty. The town is deprived from basic facilities of life.Clean drinking water is not available. There is no basic health unit in town.Electricity is a rare commodity. The government is earning 2 percent on all imported goods.People demand only some portion of revenues in providing basic amenities in town.