ever, fast replaced by tractor-trolley: certainly a faster means of
transport. In mechanical transport, different types of vehicles are
employed. Trucks are used for long distance transport of wood fuel.
There are about 216,043 trucks in the country. Most of these are also
employed in the transportation of a wide variety of items in addition
to wood fuel. In large rivers in plains, wood fuel is transported
with boats over long distances. In hilly regions, the wood fuel is
transported in small streams in the shape of billets and splits. Transport
by floating is only suited for thick wood fuel. In Sindh province,
wood fuel transportation by boats is carried out over as long distances
as 160 km. About 450 boats are employed for this purpose.
Of these, 250 are big boats and 200 small ones. Big boats carry a
wood fuel load of 40–45 tons and small boats carrying 2–8 tons.
The sale prices of wood producers vary on the basis of tree type
and quantity sold. The prices for all the sales ranged from Rs. 125
to 1000/ton during 1991–1992, with an average price of about Rs.
450/ton. Babul (Acacia nilotica) prices were the lowest, fetching
about Rs. 350/ton, while assorted pieces of other species fetched
roughly 50% higher prices; Rs. 530/ton. Mostly the provinces are self
sufficient in wood fuel supplies except Balochistan, where wood
fuel is drawn mostly from the neighboring Sindh province.