The Londoner

In a landmark ceremony, Pakistani authorities will formally hand over 2,281 acres of Gwadar Port’s free trade zone to the Chinese Oversees Ports Holding Company Ltd (COPHCL) on November 11 on a 43-year lease. The ceremony would be held in Gwadar on Wednesday and would be attended by the Chinese delegation headed by National Development and Reform Commission Vice Chairman Wang Xiaodao, who has already arrived in Pakistan. The Chinese delegation comprises of all top level officials of the Chinese government and leaders of private companies. The Pakistani delegation would be led by Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Reform Ahsan Iqbal. A senior official of the ministry said that the event would also be attended by Balochistan Chief Minister Dr Abdul Malik and Federal Minister for Ports and Shipping Kamran Michal. The government has already declared Gwadar Port a free trade zone for the next 23 years. The officer said that in this regard, a high-level meeting of both aut...

The Balochistan government has chalked out a comprehensive security plan to ensure peaceful local government elections in the volatile province. Local bodies’ elections, scheduled for Saturday Dec 7, appear to be a major challenge for the provincial government in Balochistan, led by nationalist Dr Abdul Malik Baloch. The May 11 general elections witnessed violent attacks by separatist armed groups in the capital Quetta and other troubled parts of the province. Asad Gilani, the Secretary Home and Tribal Affairs Department in Balochistan , said 55,000 security personnel including 5,000 personnel of the Pakistan Army would be deployed across the province to make the polls peaceful. Around 18,000 candidates are testing their muscle to win 4,168 seats. Baloch, Pashtun nationalists, religious parties and mainstream political parties including the Pakistan Muslim League–Nawaz (PML-N), Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaf (PTI) are contesting the elections ...