Expressing its concern over increasing prices of raw material particularly cement used in construction industry, Pakistan’s Association of Builders and Developers (ABAD) has requested the Prime Minister to look into the matter and reduce prices.



In a letter to Prime Minister Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani, ABAD chairman, Babar Mirza Chughtai, said that the manipulation in prices the ‘cement cartel’ has become quite frequent. 



“The housing industry, which is striving to provide affordable housing units to the people of Pakistan, has to stop all construction activities in the wake of sudden and frequent upsurge in cement prices,” he said. This, on the one hand, has caused many housing projects to halt work – while, on the other hand, thousands of workers are about to go out of work.