GILGIT: Hundreds of people associated with the mineral sector on Tuesday demonstrated in Skardu city against the ban on movement of precious stones from GB to other parts of the country.

Mineworkers from various areas of Baltistan division, including Shigar, Khaplu, and Rundu areas, participated in the protest staged at the Yadgar-i-Shohada Chowk.

They also announced to start a long march from Skardu to Gilgit from Wednesday (today) to coincide with a scheduled visit of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to Gilgit on Friday.

The protesters chanted slogans against the government. The protest call had been given by Gilgit-Baltistan Gems and Minerals Association.

Syed Haider Shah, an office-bearer of the association, told Dawn that majority of GB people depended on mineral sector for earning livelihoods. But, he regretted that the government had banned export of gemstones from the region. “The federal government also imposed strict conditions on issuance of permits for mining, which has deprived the poor people of getting permits for exploiting minerals in the region.”

He lamented that there was no ban on mining throughout the country, but it was slapped in GB, which was injustice with the local people.

Another office-bearer of GB Gems and Minerals Association, Nambardar Nazir said that poor families of the region had been protesting the ban for quite some time, but the concerned authorities were unmoved.

Nazir said that the federal government was unable to provide relief to the poor people of the region. He said that the GB Council handled issuance of mining permits, but regrettably, the council was based in Islamabad, having no practical knowledge of the ground situation.

He demanded that main stakeholders of the sector should be taken on board while formulating mining policy for the region. —Correspondent