QUETTA: Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Wednesday the government was focused on bringing a revolution of prosperity in Balochistan through projects of infrastructure and human development.
Addressing the groundbreaking ceremony here of three roads under the National Highway Authority (NHA), the prime minister said Balochistan had been long neglected in the past, and the government would take every step to minimize the suffering of locals.
Imran Khan said despite financial constraints, his government was committed to diverting funds towards the development of Balochistan.
The prime minister, who arrived here on a day-long visit, launched the projects including construction of 162-kilometre Ziarat-Harnai road, the 23-kilometer dualization of Quetta Western Bypass (N-25) and construction of 11-kilometer Dera Murad Jamali Bypass (N-65).
The prime minister said that compared with the 1,100 kilometres of roads constructed by previous governments in 15 years, his government completed 3,300 kilometers in two-and-a-half years.
He said the entire area along the western route of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) would be developed.
Imran Khan said caring for humanity was the main driving force that placed the nation at high pedestal of morality.
He regretted that had serious steps taken in past, the country would have undergone immense development.
He termed “elite capture” responsible for the economic divide in the society and stressed the need for a model of development for all, including rich and poor.
Imran Khan said Balochistan suffered apathy of previous rulers who had the mindset to ignore the province.
However, he said, his ideology was about making Pakistan rise by uplifting its weaker segments.
He said China’s development and its strategy to bring people out of poverty was exemplary and added that Pakistan could learn from the same model.
He said that after Khyber Pukhtunkhwa, the government was expanding the network of Rs0.1 million health insurance per household in Punjab and Gilgit Baltistan, and said the same would be discussed with the coalition government of Balochistan.
He said the project of direct subsidy to farmers on seeds and fertilizer under Kisan Card had been launched while 80 percent data of deserving families had been registered for Ehsaas socio-welfare programme.
Balochistan chief minister Jam Kamal Khan said during the last 15 years, the previous governments left several development projects in tandem, while the incumbent was focused on their completion.
He emphasized on enhanced connectivity of Quetta with Naseerabad and Sibbi through dualization to facilitate farmers and traders from adjoining areas.
He said the construction work on roads and dams would ensure the development of militancy-hit areas that had long witnessed unrest and suffering.
He said the provincial government was spending Rs35 billion out of its own resources for the development of Balochistan besides the Rs20 billion allocated by the federal government.
Minister for Communication Murad Saeed said the projects would usher in a new era of development in the province.
He said that Imran Khan started the western route of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor from Balochistan, turning the dream of prosperity into reality.
The prime minister was also given a briefing on the overall situation of Balochistan and the development projects.
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