The Londoner

By Sikander Hayat I have always been very interested in Gwadar and have been a keen observer of the scaremongering that Western and Indian media have been spreading for a long time. They have never understood what Gwadar really is and what are its implications for the people of Baluchistan . Their only concern is China and how China has helped Pakistan build this port of Gwadar to achieve its own strategic objectives.  To understand Gwadar you have to understand Balochistan and its sense of deprivation over last many decades. Balochistan has no proper urban centres apart from the capital city of Quetta and this capital city lies on the Pakistan Afghanistan border. It has suffered hugely from the influx of Afghan refugees and general law and order condition over the border in Afghanistan . It does not make sense to have a capital of a large entity like Balochistan on a volatile frontier and then to hope that this city will become the engine of growth of all of Balochistan.

By Sikander Hayat I do not know if anyone else has noticed but to me the news that 4000 Baloch youth  has been recruited in the Pakistan army with another 10000 on their way to joining the force in near future seemed to be a major strategic shift by the Pakistan army. It is true that the rules on education were relaxed for this intake but other than that all other criterion for the recruitment was in place. This batch of soldiers from Baluchistan thoroughly deserved their place in Pakistan army. Let’s first look at the past and to be honest Baloch youngsters were never at the forefront of the people joining Pakistan army due to the strict rules applied by the army. Baloch people felt alienated and given the central position of the army in the Pakistani society, they felt that they are not part of the Pakistani society. It is also a fact that many Balochis have fought and died for Pakistan but it is also true that their number was not comparable to the other ethnic group

By Sikander Hayat  Pakistan is looking to revoke its agreement with Singapore Port Authority (SPA) because of the fact that no work of substance has been carried out at the project and the purpose for which it was being built is not anywhere near being met. The main purpose of this port is to make Gwadar the hub of trade for the landlocked Afghanistan & other central Asian republics. Given the fact that Pakistan is feeling the huge impact economically by the on-going war against the terrorists and large deployments of Pakistan army on its western border, Gwadar project has acquired huge significance for the revival of Pakistani economy and bringing out of poverty large areas of Baluchistan. I have written previously on this blog that Gwadar must not be abandoned ad the bastard child of dictatorship. Just because Musharaf took a keen interest in developing Gwadar especially and Baluchistan generally does not mean that the new government let it slip into degradation. Pervez Musharaf

By Sikander Hayat It is true that Musharaf was the first person to really take a keen interest in the development of Gwadar and he was probably taking personal interest in the city of Gwadar to make it an industrial and tourist destination. Musharaf was an army man but not all of his ideas were bad. It can be argued that Gwadar in general and Baluchistan in particular have been neglected under democratic governments and it took an army man in the form of Pervaiz Musharaf to kick start the development projects in Baluchistan. Gwadar was the poster child of this development idea. Building the coastal highway to join Gwadar with Karachi was a master stroke and starting the port construction was another major step towards the right direction. Where he went wrong was the lack of consultation with the local stakeholders and tried to force feed development to Gwadar people. Locals thought of the project as a colonisation attempt by the federal government and balked at the idea of increase in

By Sikander Hayat 7th National Finance Commission Award has been signed into agreement today in the port city of Gwadar, Baluchistan. Punjab and Federal Government have given up some of their share to meet the needs of Baluchistan and NWFP. This is a historic occasion for Pakistan because it is first time that all federating units have reached consensus without any major disagreements. A new formula has been devised to distribute resources among the centre and the federating units. Under the award population will be given 82 per cent weightage, poverty 10.3 per cent, revenue collection five per cent (2.5 per cent revenue generation, 2.5 per cent revenue collection) and area 2.7 per cent. Under the new NFC Award, the federation met the demand of the provincial governments for a greater share in national resources. The provincial share of the divisible pool would increase from 47.5 per cent to 56 per cent in the first year of NFC and 57.5 per cent in the remaining years of the Award. Un

By Sikander Hayat Gwadar cannot prosper until it is properly connected to the world. There has been a good news in that respect that Gwadar will be provided money by the federal government to build a new airport in the city . According to Daily Dawn, the government has decided to provide Rs6.18 billion for construction of an international airport in Gwadar. The total cost of the project is Rs7.5 billion. The government of Oman will provide a grant of $17.5 million. A senior member of the Planning Commission said the decision had been taken under the government’s Balochistan development policy. The CAA has acquired 4,300 acres. It estimates that the airport will be operational by 2020 and it will be able to handle large passenger and cargo aircraft. The second phase of the airport is scheduled to be completed by 2030 and the final phase by 2050 when it will have the capacity to handle more than one million passengers and 50,000 tons of cargo a year. The existing airport built

By Sikander Hayat The areas comprising the state of Pakistan have a rich history and are steeped in the traditions of martial kind. Tribes which are the foundation stone of Pakistan come from all ethnic groups of Pakistan either they be Sindhi, Balochi, Pathan or Punjabi. One of these men of war & honour were Mir Chakar Khan Rind. He is probably the most famous leader coming out of Baloch ethnic group of Pakistan. Mir Chakar Khan Rind or Chakar-i-Azam (1468 – 1565 ) was a Baloch king and ruler of Satghara in (Southern Pakistani Punjab) in the 15th century. He is considered a folk hero of the Baloch people and an important figure in the Baloch epic Hani and Sheh Mureed. Mir Chakar lived in Sibi in the hills of Balochistan and became the head of Rind tribe at the age of 18 after the death of his father Mir Shahak Khan. Mir Chakar's kingdom was short lived because of a civil war between the Lashari and Rind tribes of Balochistan. Mir Chakar and Mir Gwaharam Khan Lashari, hea

By Sikander Hayat Government of Pakistan has presented the initial bill for the granting of further rights to Balochistan province. Before we talk about the points of the bill presented, we must know some basic realities about Balochistan. That will help us in understanding the background in which this bill is being presented. Baluchistan is the largest province in the country by geographical area and due to its scattered population, the most economically challenged as well. Its neighbouring regions are Iran to the west, Afghanistan and the Federally Administered Tribal Areas to the north and Punjab and Sindh to the east.To the south is the Arabian Sea. Balochistan is believed to be rich in mineral resources. It is the second major, after Sindh, supplier of natural gas to the country. This issue of gas is also a major issue as Balochistan’s provincial government wants more royalty on the gas production in the province. Balochistan has a population of around 10 million inhabitants. Ove

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Food and Agriculture Nazar Mohammad Gondal on Saturday said the government was considering including the provision of 200 bulldozers in Balochistan Development Package, which will be announced shortly. This demand was made today in a meeting between delegation of Balochistan including provincial agriculture minister, Asad Khan Baloch, MNA Changaize Khan along with federal agriculture minister and high officials of the ministry. After the meeting, the minister told journalists that Balochistan was a big province area wise and the federal government would try its level best to facilitate agriculture in the province. Cotton, being a cash crop of the country, was successfully launched in Balochistan and its sowing areas would be extended to 50,000 acres of area in 19 districts. New varieties of cotton were also supplied in Balochistan and the minister claimed that all such experiments are yielding positive result. A senior official of the ministry of food an

Khuzdar or Khozdar (Urdu: خضدار ) is a town located in Khuzdar District in Balochistan, Pakistan. Khuzdar is the capital of Khuzdar District, which was created on 1 March 1974. Previously, Khuzdar was part of Kalat District. Khuzdar was the capital of the Brahui kingdom of Makran. In the early 17th Century it was part of the Jhalawan kingdom, but it soon fell under the Kingdom of Kalat, where it remained until a series of revolts during the reign of Khudadad Khan (1857-1893). By 1896, after Khudadad's death, the authority of Kalat was restored. Under it treaty with Kalat, the British appointed a political agent at Khuzdar in 1903. British assistance continued until 1947, after which the area joined Pakistan, and became part of the Baluchistan States Union. When the Baluchistan States Union became Kalat Division, Khuzdar was established as the divisional headquarters. The divisional administration of Pakistan ended in 2000. The Divisional administration again established as the Divi

Hub (Urdu: حب) (also known as Hub Chowki) is the capital city of the Hub Tehsil, located in the Lasbela District of the Balochistan province in Pakistan. Hub is economically one of the largest industrial cities in Balochistan. In terms of demographics, the ethnicity of the residents is mainly composed by the Brahvi and Baluch although Punjabis, Sindhis and Pukhtoons also reside here. By religion, the majority of the population is Muslim while consistent concentrations of Hindus are also present. Geographically, Hub is situated near the edge of Balochistan and is close to the border with Sindh. It is approximately 25 kilometres away from Karachi. The postal code of the city is 90250.Geographically Name is (Hab Chauki). The main market of Hub is located on the both sides of E.C.O (R.C.D) Road. With thanks to Wikipedia.

Turbat (Urdu: تربت) is a city located in the south of Balochistan province of Pakistan.The town is the administrative centre of Kech District and Turbat Tehsil, the town itself contains one Union council. The town is located in southwest of the Balochistan province in Pakistan it is situated on the left bank of the Kech River, which is a tributary to the Dasht River. The Makran Range to the north and east descends to coastal plains in the south. The town is a marketplace for dates grown in the surrounding region and has a date-processing factory. Jowar (sorghum), barley, wheat, and rice are also grown, and livestock are raised. Koh-e-Murad (Persian: كوه مراد) is a shrine, which is located in Turbat, Baluchistan. This is a sacred place for Zikris where they believe that Muhammad Jaunpuri, who they view as the Mahdi, meditated and offered prayers for a long time. The followers of Zikri sect gather here at the night of 27th Ramadan for a ritual visit (Arabic: زيارة‎, Urdu/Persian Persian

ISLAMABAD: Interior Minister Rehman Malik is likely to visit Kabul soon to meet Baloch leader Brahmdagh Bugti to win him over, well-placed sources told Dawn on Friday. However, it has not been decided whether Mr Malik will visit Afghanistan before President Asif Ali Zardari’s coming visit to the US in which he will be accompanying the president or after his return from America. The sources confirmed that Brahmdagh Bugti, the grandson of Nawab Akbar Bugti, was in Kabul and in constant touch with the government. The government has realised that without bringing disgruntled Baloch leaders home permanent peace could not be restored in Balochistan. In a statement on Friday, the interior minister said: ‘I will go anywhere to meet and appease Brahmdagh.’ Mr Rehman is likely to go Kabul to attend the oath-taking of the Afghan president. The government has already requested the US to expel Brahmdagh from Kabul because it believes he is involved in terrorist attacks in Pakistan apparently to ave

By Sikander Hayat These days it is becoming fashionable to invoke East Pakistan every time someone talks about Balochistan . Now I am all for learning from history but there are some comparisons which cannot be made basically because of facts related to such situations. Here are some of the major differences between East Pakistan &  Balochistan : 1. When East Pakistan became Bangladesh it had greater population than West Pakistan whereas Balochistan is 5% of Pakistan’s total population . 2. Population mix is an indicator as well because East Pakistan was nearly 100% Bengali while the population mix in Balochistan is 50% Baloch and the remaining 50% is made up of Pashtuns , Brahwis , Sindhis   and some Punjabis. 3. Capital of Balochistan Quetta is a Baloch minority city as it dominated by the Pashtuns in addition to a sizable Sindhi and Punjabi population. 4. Dhaka which was the Capital of East Pakistan was never a Bengali minority city and it does not bode well