Parliamentary panel on Balochistan reaches Quetta

The members of parliamentary sub-committee on Balochistan, headed by Senator Mushahid Hussain, arrived in Quetta on Wednesday on a three-day stay.
During their stay there, the sub-committee members will hold meetings with government officials, political parties leaders and reps of other shades of society and visit Gwadar port.
Sources told Business Recorder here that a detailed presentation would be given to the parliamentarians on the deployment and check posts of the Frontier Corps and the Coast Guards, followed by a question-answer session on November 4.
Next day, the committee members will hold meetings with provincial government representatives and leaders of various political parties.
It is pertinent to note that Jamhoori Watan Party and some other nationalist leaders have already handed over their proposals and recommendations to the sub-committee chairman last week.
On the last day of their stay, the legislators will visit Gwadar port where they will be briefed on various aspects of the multi-billion-rupee project and the concerns of the Baloch politicians and other segments of the society, sources said.
They will meet representatives of fishermen who have been displaced due to the project and have no alternative source of income for their livelihood. The committee will also interact with the affectees of the Mirani Dam, sources said.
The sub-committee, tasked to give recommendations on boosting inter-provincial harmony, is headed by the Leader of the House in the Senate Senator Wasim Sajjad. The sub-committee will give proposals to promote provincial harmony as per constitution.
The 38-member parliamentarian committee on Balochistan is headed by PML President Shujaat Hussain who had aired the proposal to resolve the crisis in Balochistan through dialogue instead of use of force. The committee has 21 parliamentarians from the ruling coalition and 17 from the combined opposition.
Senator Sanaullah Baloch, who is member of the 18-member sub-committee, currently in Quetta, told Business Recorder that a realistic study of the situation and tangible recommendations thereon could help bridge the increasing gap between the Centre and the province.
"The local population has concerns over the unbridled powers enjoyed by the Frontier Corps and the Coast Guards based on the rules and regulations introduced by the British rulers during 19th century," he said.
The nationalist leaders have raised apprehensions about the Gwadar project and some other schemes, saying these would turn the local population into minority and deprive them of the benefits of the natural resources.
Even some reports about insurgency and surfacing of the 'Baloch National Army' also surfaced in the media in recent months.