Sindh''s Minister for Finance, Murad Ali Shah urged the federal government on Friday to convene meeting of the Council of Common Interests (CCI) as early as possible so that outstanding issues and concerns of provinces could be discussed and decided at an apex forum.
He was speaking at the Parliamentary Committee on China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) meeting which met under the chairmanship of Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed.
The meeting was attended by Minister for Planning, Development and Reforms Ahsan Iqbal, Minister for Port & Shipping, Kamran Micheal and Secretary Water & Chairman, Port Qasim.
Murad Ali Shah while representing the Sindh government presented the perspectives of the province regarding CPEC issues before the committee.
He proposed to establish a port at Keti Bandar as a special terminal for export of coal which would be mined at Thar as well as a rail link and Special Economic Zone to support the proposed port.
Endorsing the point of view of Sindh Finance Minister, Senator Mushahid Hussain directed the Ministry of Ports and Shipping to make consultation with the experts of the Sindh government to examine the feasibility of the project so that Thar could become the future energy power house.
On the issue of the Sukhi Kenari Hydel power project in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the Chairman Committee constituted a two-member Sub-Committee comprising Senator Gen Salahuddin Tirmizi (retd) and Senator Shibli Faraz to coordinate both with the provincial and federal government to resolve the issue at the earliest, with meetings scheduled for early March.
The committee also discussed the perspective of Sindh regarding issues of Port Qasim. There are issues of registration of land which is claimed by the Sindh government and is being utilized for the Port Qasim coal project.
After hearing both sides, the Chairman directed the Ministry of Water and Power, Ministry of Ports and Shipping and the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources to conduct substantive and speedy discussions with the government of Sindh to resolve this issue. The committee decided that all these issues will be concluded by the end of March.
The meeting decided that in March, the representatives of the government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa would be invited to present their perspective on the CPEC related issues.