Schooling and social change | A column by Mian Nawaz Sharif PM

 Schooling and social change

The importance of education — and especially schooling — cannot be overestimated. Not only has the expansion of primary and secondary education been linked to accelerated economic growth, poverty eradication and improved income equality, but education also appears to be closely associated with social enrichment and inclusion, the upgrading of human capital, increased opportunities, and enhanced freedom and welfare. That is why, as Pakistan’s prime minister, I have placed universal access to education very high on the national agenda.
Education influences the way people perceive the world around them, understand issues, and find solutions to their problems. It makes them more aware of their rights and duties and affects how they interact within their communities and with the state and its institutions. Above all, it enables them to think critically and question established wisdom, thereby enabling them to rise above prejudice, myth and restrictive historical legacies.
In this sense, education is a major driver of social progress. And it is the key to fulfilling my promise, made when I took office two years ago, to create a new framework for social change in Pakistan, one that ensures equal opportunities and social justice for everyone and stops the exploitation of the poor and harnesses their potential.

إعلان

As the Oslo Summit on Education for Development approaches, I remain firm in my commitment to securing the right to a high-quality education for every child in Pakistan — especially for girls, who have long faced high barriers to education. But there remain considerable obstacles to fulfilling that commitment. Indeed, nearly six million Pakistani children are currently out of school, and many more are not learning even basic mathematics or reading skills. Dropout rates are high. And, perhaps worst of all, terrorists and extremists have been targeting schools, blowing up their buildings and threatening their teachers, particularly in the northern part of the country. In a particularly tragic incident last December, terrorists attacked young students and teachers at a school in Peshawar.
I now reiterate the promise that I made after that attack. My government will not allow Pakistan’s schools — so vital to our country’s future — to become targets of terrorism. Education is the most important investment we can make in our most precious assets — our children — and we will not tolerate even the slightest threat to it. Protecting schools from extremists today will help to stem the rise of extremism tomorrow. Indeed, given the contribution of ignorance, lack of choice, and socioeconomic deprivation to the rise of extremism in parts of Pakistan and Afghanistan, ensuring that future generations have better education, improved capabilities, and more opportunities will ensure that the next generation will not become easy prey for terrorist organizations.
In addition to the risk that a few would be tempted by extremism is the certainty that, if we fail to meet our commitment to universal education, millions of children would be relegated to a life of poverty and struggle, with their hopes, dreams and potential squandered, undermining the country’s development potential. More than half of Pakistan’s population is under the age of 25; theirs is the generation with the potential to drive progress and prosperity in the country — if, of course, they receive the education they deserve.
Given how unlikely it is that a free-market approach would lead to the equitable provision of education, my government has committed to increase the public resources allocated for education, which averaged only 2.4 percent of GDP from 2004 to 2013, to 4percent of GDP over the next three years. Such funding will support the steps needed to fulfill the promise, contained in our country’s constitution, that the state will “provide free and compulsory secondary education within minimum possible period.”
Those steps include cooperation with provincial governments — which bear the primary responsibility for primary and secondary education in Pakistan — to devise a roadmap for universal enrollment. In order to improve the quality of teaching and learning, we are working not only to expand facilities for teacher training, but also to draw more talented people to the profession by recognizing and honoring the service of teachers. And we are investing in computers and other advanced learning tools to ensure that our children can compete internationally.
We have also launched several new initiatives to make education more widely accessible. One such initiative is the National Endowment Scholarships for Talent, which finances the education of poor students.
Finally, we are strengthening the institutional scaffolding of Pakistan’s education system. For example, we have created the National Curriculum Council, which will standardize school curricula throughout the country, while ensuring that they are consistent with national requirements and international benchmarks. Reforms to the examination system are being introduced to complement this effort. My pledge is being turned into action. But my government cannot do it alone. To overcome the challenges we face and fulfill our promise to our children, we need active support from the international community. The Millennium Development Goal (MDG) of achieving universal primary education was expected to reach its target this year; it has not. And so now is the ideal moment for the world to renew its commitment to education.
We must approach the Sustainable Development Goals, which aim to carry on the work of the MDGs, with a clear direction, a sense of purpose, and strong resolve. For our part, we have created a SDG unit in our Ministry of Planning, Development, and Reform to coordinate their timely achievement. We hope that other countries will show the same commitment. For Pakistan, education is not merely a priority — it is a policy imperative.
—
The writer is the prime minister of Pakistan. ©Project Syndicate

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Nandipur Power Plant To Be Fully Operational Soon

ISLAMABAD: Managing Director Nandipur Power Project Muhammad Mehmood on Friday said that the 425 MW Nandipur Power Project would be fully operationalized shortly.

Talking to the media here, the MD said that three units of the plant had already been commissioned and the plant was supply 300 MW to the national grid station.

He said the fourth unit of combine circle would be ready in few weeks which would help attain the plant full generation capacity of 425 MW.

He said that currently the plant was shut down for replacing DC panel at switch yard and would start supplying generation in next three days.

The MD said that the plant would generate 525 MW after gas provision. However, he said that the provision of gas would take around one year.

Replying to a question, Muhammad Mehmood said that the project was completed within its estimated approved PC-1 cost of Rs.58 billion.

He said that the Nandipur power plant was 2nd most efficient thermal power plant after Guddu 747 MW.

It is pertinent to mention here that during the tenure of the previous federal government, the project was delayed for about four years resulting surge in it cost from $329 million to $847m.

(Web Desk)

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Oil output expected to rise to 40m barrels next year

 Oil output expected to rise to 40m barrels next year

 

The government has set the production target for crude oil at 40 million barrels for the next financial year, an increase of 12% over the goal for the outgoing year.

This year, the target is 35.62 million barrels and actual production is likely to be 35 million barrels by the end of the year on June 30, which is 98% of the output the government expected to achieve.

In 2014-15, maximum crude oil production per day is 100,000 barrels per day and the government plans to increase it to 110,000 barrels per day in the next financial year, beginning July.

For gas production, the target has been set at 1.5 trillion cubic feet for the next financial year, which is only 2% higher than the target of 1.470 trillion cubic feet for the outgoing year. Actual output this year is expected to be 1.460 trillion cubic feet, hitting 99.32% of the goal.

Oil and gas exploration companies are planning to drill 126 wells to meet the target for the next year.

According to the Annual Plan 2015-16, next year the demand is projected to stand at 23 million tons of oil (473,000 barrels per day) and 2.1 trillion cubic feet of gas (six billion cubic feet per day).

Keeping in view the expected supply of domestically produced oil at only 110,000 barrels per day and 1.5 trillion cubic feet of gas, the gap between supply and demand is required to be met through imports.

About 18 to 19 million tons of crude oil and petroleum products will be imported while domestic gas supply will be supported through import of 400 million cubic feet of liquefied natural gas (LNG) per day. This will result in bridging to some extent the gap of over two billion cubic feet of gas per day.

A positive feature for the energy sector in the past one year had been a sharp decline in international crude prices, which triggered a 29% fall in domestic petroleum product prices. With this, costs of transport and electricity generation have also gone down.

In an effort to enhance the exploration and production of oil and gas, a study on shale oil and gas deposits is being conducted with financial assistance of the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and it is expected to be completed by the end of 2015.

The study will give an assessment and allied aspects of shale oil and gas resources in the country, paving the way for development of a comprehensive and investment-friendly shale oil and gas policy.

In order to extend their network in 2014-15, gas utilities – Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) and Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) – laid 6,799 km of new transmission and distribution pipelines to provide gas to 418,410 new consumers.

Next year, they plan to add a further 419,430 consumers by laying 7,332 km of new transmission and distribution pipelines.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 9^th, 2015.

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Why this year’s budget is not as bad as you think

With the revelation of the Pakistan Economic Survey 2014-2015 ─ essentially a scorecard of the economy’s performance over the current fiscal year ─ and the much-awaited presentation of the FY15-16 budget to the cabinet, there has been a lot of talk about missed targets.

Sure, we may have missed a variety of ‘targets’ last year ─ and one of the government’s more popular rationale for doing so is the four-month-long country-wide sit-in by the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf last year ─ but I believe the government’s performance over the past year has been, on the whole, fairly good, with what seems to be a similar forecast for the upcoming year.

Why? Let’s look at the data.

Growth matters?

The PML-N government has typically set ambitious growth targets for itself over the course of its tenure ─ which the previous government also did ─ and while both governments have missed their growth targets, the gap between the expected and achieved growth rate is much wider during the PPP government than during the PML-N’s tenure. To be fair, though, the previous government had to deal with the aftershocks of a global financial crisis.

Despite missing GDP growth targets, the current government has maintained a consistently higher GDP growth rate over the past two years, while the previous government’s growth rate has seen severe fluctuations.

It is worth mentioning, however, that the government's current projections for a 7 per cent growth rate by the end of their tenure are somewhat far-fetched, as successive governments have regularly touted the magical number seven as a GDP growth target.

Also read: Budget — Challenge of implementation

I feel it’s silly to criticise a government solely on the basis of GDP growth. GDP growth, in general may display a decreasing trend as a country becomes more developed ─ or display erratic behaviour, increasing over a period of a few years, then decreasing, following a typical boom-bust type of cycle.

An example of the above is Pakistan’s own average GDP growth, which in the 60s was 6.8 per cent, 4.9 per cent in the 70s, and 6.5 per cent in the 80s. One could also look to China which has, after years of admirable growth, begun to experience a slowdown.

When it comes to the budget outlay, the previous government typically over-spent, and the outlay rose sharply over their tenure, while the current government appears to be making an effort to stick to the budgeted outlay ─ which also rose at a slower rate during the two years the PML-N has been in power.

In fact, the fiscal deficit was controlled this year, the PES 14-15 says, because expenditure was controlled by the government.

Despite fiscal control exerted by the government, one may observe a handful of capital-intensive projects worked on this fiscal year ─ for instance, the new Metro bus in Islamabad everyone is raving about. Pakistan and China also signed a landmark $45 billion deal for the development of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, as well as the Rs 165 billion Lahore metro train project.

Also read: Budget's aim not to burden ordinary citizens: Ishaq Dar

The government has also had to step up army operations in the form of Zarb-i-Azb and the National Action Plan in order to combat terrorism within the country ─ Rs 45 billion has been allocated just to Zarb-i-Azb in the upcoming fiscal year.

Why we love to hate the government

An observation I’ve made over the past few years is that people love to hate the government for their defence budget allocation; this happens every year. It’s the one statistic everyone keeps an eye out for.

Our defence budget may have increased 11 per cent in FY15-16, taking up 16.6 per cent of total expenditure, but it still lags behind general public services (28 per cent of total expenditure) and debt services (31 per cent of total expenditure).

Comparing absolute values reveals a sharp disparity between defence and education expenditure ─ a comparison many people are quick to make ─ with defence expenditure rising to an estimated Rs 781 billion for the coming year, while education has been allocated Rs 75.5 billion.

Data taken from Budget in Brief publications.

While it may, on the surface, seem entirely unreasonable for defence to be allocated such a large portion of the budget compared to education, it is important to consider the context within which these funds have been allocated for the budget.

Pakistan has been ‘fighting wars on many fronts’ for many years now ─ but it is only recently that the government and the army seem to be taking counter-terrorism seriously, as evidenced by the recent surge in operations in various sensitive areas of the country, the implementation of Zarb-i-Azb and the National Action Plan, as well as cracking down on terrorism in urban areas ─ more specifically, Karachi ─ as was noted in a recent meeting of military top brass.

Also read: Budget rundown — The devil is in the details

Another reason it doesn’t make sense to inject a whole lot of funds into education right away is the law of diminishing marginal returns ─ those funds will only be as useful as the infrastructure and systems that utilise them ─ and those systems are far from perfect at the current time.

Plying education with a large portion of total expenditure may result in inefficiency and misuse of funds across the board due to institutional problems in the sector that need to be addressed before the money can be used the way it should be.

Comparing budgeted education expenditure for the forecasted year with historical data, we find that estimated education expenditure has increased steadily over the 2008-2016 time period.

Percentages show us a slightly different story, however.

The increase in budgeted education expenditure in FY14-15 is the lowest increase in education expenditure over the course of a single fiscal year from 2009-2016, but has risen again in the FY15-16 budget.

Education expenditure as a percentage of the GDP has historically been on the lower side ─ last year it was just 1.67 per cent of the GDP ─ but the government intends to bring it up to at least 4 per cent of the GDP this year. Funnily enough, our literacy rate fell by two percentage points last year.

Ishaq Dar’s budget speech notes that the majority of the education expenditure is the responsibility of the provinces, so it is interesting to see how the provinces are faring in terms of literacy.

One of the most worrying trends is that literacy in each province fell in FY13-14 ─ except in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where it rose ─ primarily due to the increase in literacy in urban areas.

Promise of a better life?

Despite the government’s emphasis on an infrastructural growth model, I think this year’s budget shows the government’s attempts to improve socio-economic indicators, as well as infrastructure.

Dar’s budget speech also proposed tax reforms to increase tax revenue.

It is worth noting that, for the second year running, funds have been set aside for the Millennium Development Goals.

The MDGs budget for FY14-15 was apparently utilised in its entirety.

According to the United Nations Development Programme, Pakistan is on-track to achieve targets on nine indicators, while it remains off-track on 24 indicators. There was also talk in April of a uniform curriculum being introduced.

The government has been cracking down on seminaries with ambiguous sources of funding, and those that preach hate speech. This year’s budget also allocated development funds to the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan.

While minimum wage was increased from Rs 12,000 to Rs 13,000, government employees also received jumps in compensation and pensions.

According to a World Bank study, poor infrastructure is a hurdle to growth in Pakistan ─ and the government is set to spend Rs 250 billion on infrastructure next year.

A number of water, power, rail and road projects are in the pipeline. The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor ─ one of the biggest projects that came up this year ─ is expected to help build the under-developed areas of Balochistan.

This year’s budget specifically mentions investment in a new ‘Gwadar International Airport’, and a water treatment facility. Approximately 10 per cent of the current PSDP projects being undertaken by the Ministry of Planning, Development and Reforms are based in Balochistan (compared to Punjab’s 39 per cent and Sindh’s 15 per cent).

Development in the information technology sector has also been targeted by the PML-N government which has plans to lay down Rs 2.8 billion worth of fibre optic cables in 128 tehsils on a fast-track basis to improve connectivity in remote areas.

But why should I pay taxes?

But spending money is tough when you don’t have money, and that’s why the government has taken up the task of reworking existing taxation regulation ─ in order to increase revenues.

One reason I have frequently heard people use as a justification for tax avoidance is “our politicians don’t pay taxes, why should we?” amidst concerns that the average taxpayers hard-earned wages go towards bolstering the lifestyles of the rich and powerful. Those aren’t invalid concerns.

Also read: It is a budget for the privileged, says MQM

But I would like to point out that the latest version of the Parliamentarians’ Tax Directory shows our politicians paid Rs 553,202,514 in taxes over FY13-14, as compared to FY12-13’s figure of Rs 258,630,039 ─ an increase of 114 per cent over one fiscal year.

While announcing the PES 14-15, Dar said tax collection increased by 3 per cent over the past 11 months.

Indirect taxes on certain items have been increased ─ cigarettes and mobile phones two of the more ‘well-known’ items on which a greater sales tax has been imposed.

Also read: Budget 2015-16 — What went up, what went down

Discriminatory tax exemptions in the form of special regulatory orders (SROs) have also been slashed by 33 per cent.

The Finance Minister’s speech also mentioned anti-corruption measures to tackle non-compliance with tax laws. While it is unlikely that the government will meet its revenue targets this year, it seems even less likely if tax reform is not implemented to the letter.

It is a credit to the current government that they have attempted to balance growing defence expenditure by trying to be fair to socio-economic sectors as well.

However, the problem of a slow release of funds for development projects must be tackled as funds are generally released in the third quarter of the year, when the propensity for creating an impact is limited.

While we still have a long way to go when it comes to the socio-economic state of affairs ─ Pakistan has remained at 146 of 187 countries on the Human Development Index for the past two years ─ I, being stupidly optimistic, am of the opinion that Pakistan may finally be on its way to better days.

I may have voted for change in the last elections, but if the Nawaz government lives up to its promises by the conclusion of its tenure, I wouldn’t think twice about voting for them in 2018.

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Quetta-Zahidan container train begins operation today

 Quetta-Zahidan container train begins operation today

LAHORE: The container special train between Quetta and Zahidan will start operation from Tuesday after about four years with the assistance of Iranian Railways.

Initially, the freight train will operate once in a week with 24 bogies. Having a turnaround time of one week, the train would carry rice and other items to Iran and bring sulpher, tarcoal and chemicals to Pakistan.

“The number of bogies will gradually be increased to 40,” said Minister for Railways Khwaja Saad Rafique at a news conference at Pakistan Railways headquarters in Lahore on Monday.

Iran would provide some 2,000 litres of diesel for the locomotives at subsidised rate of Rs15 per litre. The Iranian government had been requested to supply some 5,000 litres of diesel at subsidised rate so that the operational cost of the train could be minimised. The Iranian government has promised to sympathetically consider the request, said the minister.

“Pakistan Railways is ready to operate ECO train from Islamabad to Istanbul through Quetta, Taftan and Zahidan and is awaiting a green signal from the Turkish government. The launch is being delayed because of the upgrading of tracks between Ankara and Istanbul. The Turkish government has offered to bear the operational cost of the ECO train during initial months of its launch, but we declined the offer with thanks and arranged business for it,” said Mr Rafique.

Regarding the financial health of the PR, the minister said that by May-end the railways earned Rs28.67 billion against the budgetary target of Rs28 billion.

“We have revised the budgetary target to Rs31bn as we are likely to earn Rs8bn alone from the freight sector against the budgetary target of Rs6.30bn,” said the minister.

The Green Line train between Islamabad and Karachi has been a success story as it usually has 100 per cent occupancy.

There were some shortcomings in the Green Line train which had been overcome. From June 20, commuters would pay less for short distances.

Published in Dawn, June 9th, 2015

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GB elections | PMLN to form the government IA

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Interview | Ahsan Iqbal

Interview | Ahsan Iqbal

This interview was published in Weekly Nidaiemillat dated May 28, 2015

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100 MW solar project | A report published in Nidai Millat

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China Pakistan Economic Corridor | Province Wise List of Projects

CPEC Province Wise Projects List- May 15

CPEC Province Wise Projects List- May 15

Brilliant description of Pak-China corridor, the projects under the Corridor .. The 3 routes explained! #Pakistan pic.twitter.com/laB4xJVTmI

— Dr Faisal Ranjha (@fasiranjha) May 18, 2015

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Railway decay seems reversing

 Railway decay seems reversing

 NASEER AHMAD

KARACHI: “If you find a train arriving late, set your watch right,” remarked a smart young porter hurrying down the platform overloaded with several pieces of a passenger’s luggage. “Trains don’t arrive late these days!”

I recently set off from Rawalpindi by Tezgam for Karachi. Exactly at 8.30am it whistled and after a few seconds a second whistle blew and the train began to chug. A relative texted me the train’s travel timetable. All along I checked it with the train’s arrival at the various stations, and everywhere it was ahead of schedule. I got suspicious of the genuineness of the timetable. At Multan I asked a vendor how long the train would stop over there. “It will be here for half an hour, sir. Don’t worry,” he said and added with a justified sense of elation: “It arrived here ahead of time by 15 minutes.”

When the train pulled in at Karachi’s Landhi station, it was around an hour earlier.

Also read: China offers to invest $3.8bn in railways

Trains arrival and departure has always been a serious issue. Throughout the several decades a train arriving on time was an anomaly. If a train arrived within a few hours of its due time, people were content with it. The perennial delay was blamed on the driver’s greed for overtime which he purportedly earned at the cost of the passengers’ precious time. That could be true or may not be so, but train delays had been a common phenomenon in the past. But following the assassination of Benazir Bhutto in December 2007, the destruction of numerous train bogies and locomotives made the railways go haywire. It never recovered from that unfortunate episode till the last government lasted. Former railway minister Haji Ghulam Ahmed Bilour himself was so pessimistic about the railways’ future that he declared that the system was doomed and he could not help revive it.

Critics started alleging that since the minister had his own transport business, he was deliberately trying to ruin the railways.

Anyway, trains were late, sometimes by days not just hours. In one such unfortunate episode a train reached from Karachi to Rawalpindi in almost a week instead of the 26-hour journey. People waiting at railway stations were often told that the train was on its way from the other end, it would arrive here after so many hours delay, then it would be rolled to the washing yard before it arrived on the platform to pick passengers. The causes mentioned for the inordinate delays were various, from fuel shortages to engine breakdowns and non-availability of spare locomotives. This forced many regular passengers to opt for other modes of travel, particularly buses, which have since flourished, offering fantastic facilities and luxuries –– free cold drinks and snacks presented by women attendants, working air conditioning, films etc. But that trend appears to be reversing now with trains getting back on the track.

The prime minister’s inauguration of a new train, called Greenline train, on Friday may be proof of it. Railway officials claim that the train is not only centrally air-conditioned, it offers “WiFi connection throughout the route, three-time quality meal, tea, mineral water, newspaper and standard bedding” to the passengers during the travel between Islamabad and Karachi.

Timing is not the only area where the trains have shown some improvement. Water supply and sanitation have also markedly become better than before. The trains are swept at least once during the journey.

During the last few months the steadily rising fares seems to have been reversed. For instance, earlier an AC sleeper ticket between Karachi and Rawalpindi cost Rs6,300; now it is for Rs4,700. Similarly, at the station, coolies roam about offering their services to whoever wants them. Their role has changed considerably from that of an agent of corrupt officials who sold tickets in black market through these men in red shirts and white shalwars. Now they only help passengers with their luggage and comfortably lodge them in their already reserved seats. Black-marketing of tickets is uncommon now. Even the porters are supposed to charge official rates for carrying luggage pieces, though most passengers are unaware of or do not care much about it and just bargain with them.

The trains are comfortable with mostly having bogies imported from China, punctual and in some cases luxury too. Yes, what is called AC sleeper has various compartments for four, three and even two passengers.

Most people credit the present government for the turnaround. “Minister Saad Rafiq really deserves commendation for this improvement,” said Iftikhar Hussain, an employee of the Sui gas company, who says he cannot afford to travel by air and cannot sit for long hours in a bus either.

“Credit for this goes to the PTI. If it were not for Imran Khan’s sit-ins, this government wouldn’t have done anything for the public during its first four years,” said Mohammad Tufail, a PTI supporter.

Whether the credit goes to Minister Saad Rafique, the PTI’s dharnas or the changed internal and external circumstances, China’s assistance, passengers don’t care. They want a dependable, comfortable and affordable mode of travel and they seem to be getting it. With Greenline train on the tracks, I’m looking forward to enjoying a trip to the capital and back with the promised cool VIP treatment on it.

The government’s enthusiasm shows that the privitisation process set in motion with Business Train and Shalimar Express is not in favour of the people. Privatisation is just adding to their woes with higher fares. And they have no economy class, only which most Pakistanis can afford.

Published in Dawn, May 19th, 2015

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FACTS about Pak China Economic Corridor (PCEC)

CHINA-PAK ECONOMIC CORRIDOR

Overview:

CPEC is the name of a portfolio of projects that has four part utilisation of Gwadar Port, energy portfolio in which Chinese companies would initiate more than 16,000 MW projects in Pakistan, infrastructure development connecting roads, railways and airports with the corridor establishment of industrial parks across the corridor.

• CPEC was kick-started in July 2013 when PM Nawaz Sharif visited China to sign the MoU between the two countries
• CPEC has ushered in era of geo-economics
• CPEC is not a single road but multiple networks of sea, air, roads linking Gwadar to China and the region
• CPEC is mega-developmental project that will link Kashghar in Western China with the deep sea Port in Gwadar, Pakistan through a mesh of communication networks
• CPEC communication networks will include a world-class seaport, commercial sea lines, an airport, highways, railways, fibre optic cables as well as oil and gas pipelines.
• Under CPEC, joint cooperation committee has been formed with Ministry of P,D & R and NDRC China.
• Pak-China Joint working groups have been meeting since past year to shortlist and approve projects. 
• Media reports that only discussed us a terrorism haven are now talking about Pakistan as a safe haven for 46 bil $ Chinese investment The investment in various projects of CPEC has generated positive signals across globe for our economy

Transport/Infrastructure:

• Gwadar will be linked to Kashgar via multiple routes.
• Three principle alignments to link Gwadar-Khunjrab passing through eastern, central and western parts of the country.
• Currently Gwadar is linked to upcountry only through Karachi, work well underway on western route
• First the western route will be made operational linking Gawadar to Sorab, Qilla Saifullah, Quetta and DI Khan
• 195 km Gwadar to Hoshab section to be completed by 2015 by FWO
• Work is underway on N-85 Hoshab to Surab missing link, to be completed by Dec 2016
•  About 65 percent work on Gwadar-Hoshab and 30 percent work on Sorab to Hoshab has been completed. 
• FWO workers have completed 100-200 km of road from Gwadar to Sorab, 15 workers were killed by insurgents.
•  Zhob to DI Khan road will be upgraded with assistance from ADB. 
• 110 km Khuzdar to Bessima road in Baluchistan to be completed in short term 
• Eastbay Expressway from Gwadar to Karachi included in CPEC infrastructure projects.
• Multan-Sukkur stretch is being completed as part of PM’s longstanding vision to link Karachi to Peshawar via motorways.
• Up-gradation of 440 km KKH Phase II from Raikot to Islamabad to be upgraded with 3500B USD.
• 1,736 km of railway tracks to be constructed/upgraded linking Gwadar with Kashgar.
•  In short term existing railway network M1 to be upgraded under CPEC

Not a single inch of original route plan has been changed.Controversy about route change is not based on facts, serving the agenda of anti-state elements Detailed map of CPEC routes has been shared in newspaper ads

Gawadar:

• Gwadar is the centerpiece of Pak-China cooperation.
• Gwadar will be transformed into a world-class port by 2017.
• Gwadar projects include International Airport, Technical Vocational Center, Fresh water treatment plant, Hospital, Breakwaters

Energy:

• $34 billion investment in energy sector under CPEC.
• 10,400 MWs capacity will be added to the national grid through early harvest energy generation projects to be completed by 2017/18.
• Energy projects include Coal, Hydel, Wind and Solar Plants spread across all provinces.
• Hydro power projects in Suki Kinari KP worth 870 MWs costing 1,802 Billion dollars.
• Hydro power projects in planned for AJK: Karot 720 MW and Kohala 1,100 MW worth 3,187 Bil dollars each.
• Coal Power Plants in South Punjab, Interior Sindh, Baluchistan by 2017/18.
• Coal plants in Interior Sindh including Thar, Jamshoro, Port Qasim.
• Power projects in Balochistan include Gaddani, Gwadar.
• Punjab energy projects in Sahiwal, RahimYarKhan.
• Solar Park in Baluchistan will be largest in the world producing 1000 MW, a triumph for renewable energy. 
• Thar coal reserves untapped for past 67 years, to be transformed into energy capital of the world.

Role of Provinces:

• National Harmony is crucial to reap benefits of CPEC projects.
• Gwadar, Quetta, Peshawar, Khunjrab, Lahore, Sukkur, Karachi all major nodes of CPEC.
• Less developed areas like Gilgit-Baltistan, Thar and Gwadar regions will be taken into the folds of active development

Today history has offered us a great chance in shape of CPEC, Pakistan has missed economic opportunities in the past





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Power Projects list in pakistan | Shame on KPK CM

 

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