NewsMarch 04 , 2017
Fasaad to be crushed with full state might: PM
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said on Friday that ‘fasaad’ (anarchy) would be crushed with full might of the state and if the state institutions and politicians worked jointly, the country’s problems could be resolved.
He said this while chairing a meeting of the top civil and military leadership which reviewed the ongoing operation Raddul Fasaad and agreed to continue the offensive against terrorism and extremism with full force.
They were of the view that removing irritants for secure, peaceful and stable Pakistan must be ensured at all costs. In the meeting held at the Prime Minister House, the leadership reiterated that national unity and support were indispensable for the successful implementation of the anti-terror strategy.
The meeting was attended by Minister for Interior Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, Minister for Finance Senator Muhammad Ishaq Dar, Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa, Prime Minister's Adviser on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz, National Security Adviser Lt Gen (retd) Nasser Khan Janjua and DG ISI Lt-Gen Naveed Mukhtar.
The meeting expressed the resolve to continue the offensive until all targets were achieved. The prime minister said that Pakistan had given immense sacrifices in war against terrorism. "We are fully determined to remain steadfast in our commitment and duty bound to undertake all steps to eliminate terrorists without any discrimination of region, colour or sect," he stressed.
The prime minister said that consensus among all the stakeholders and overwhelming support of the people against terrorism guaranteed wining of this war. The participants of the meeting said that the operation reflected the national resolve and commitment to wipe out terrorism from the country.
They reiterated that national unity and support were indispensable for successful implementation of the anti-terror strategy. The participants of the meeting reviewed the gains of 'Operation Raddul Fasaad' and expressed resolve that action would continue till it achieved the set targets.
The meeting expressed satisfaction over the intelligence based operations (IBOs) in various parts of the country. The participants expressed hope that the law enforcement agencies would succeed in eliminating the terrorists.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif performed ground breaking of Kurram Tungi Dam in North Waziristan Agency (NWA). After the ground-breaking ceremony, he addressed a gathering of tribal elders at Spinwam.
He again offered olive branch to his detractors by asking them to get united in the interest of Pakistan. “Everybody should dedicate to the country as the political parties should come forward to serve the nation since it is need of the hour to refrain from negative politics. It is high time for all to shun political rivalries and devote energies for elimination of poverty and illiteracy from the country,” he said.
JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman was also present on the occasion. The prime minister dashed to North Waziristan a day after announcing historic package of Fata reforms. North Waziristan had been ‘no go area’ for authorities for years together and was retrieved from the terrorist by the incumbent government.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said that it was need of the hour to refrain from negative politics and get united in the interest of Pakistan. The prime minister said that unity among the nation could help overcome difficult challenges and make the country economically strong. “History will be inscribed with the fact whether someone made positive or negative contribution for the country. When it comes to Pakistan's interest, all need to stand by one another,” he said and added that even terrorism, being the toughest of challenges, was addressed with unity of nation and consensus of all political forces and armed forces.
“Now we have to stay united for the prosperity of country after defeating the menace of terrorism," he said. He mentioned that the people of North Waziristan and armed forces rendered immense sacrifices in elimination of terrorists, which ultimately led to peace in the area. After an era of horror and fright, a new dawn of love and peace had marked the North Waziristan.
The premier said development of Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) was the government's priority. The process of including Fata in national mainstream would be initiated soon after required legislation. Fata would also get its due share in National Finance Commission (NFC) Award. He said that all the provinces and federal government would fulfill their responsibilities for the uplift of Fata. He said that the project of Kurram Tungi Dam in North Waziristan was an important milestone in development of Fata. The project would be completed at a cost of Rs123 billion, out of which rupees Rs81 billion would be provided by the United States government through USAID and the rest, Rs16 billion, by Pakistan government, he added.
The prime minister said the government was pursuing an effective agriculture and water management policy and building dams even on small rivers. He regretted that previous governments ignored this key sector and no large dam was built after Tarbela during last 40 years. He said his government took solid steps for carrying out dam-related projects including Diamer Bhasha, Neelum Jhelum, Dasu and Bunji dams. The prime minister assured that loadshedding would be consigned to the dustbin of the history soon as he had directed the authorities concerned to speed up the electricity generation projects. “Pakistan is a resource rich country and it could make revolutionary progress provided the judicious and prudent utilisation of resources. ”We can make our destiny ourselves and I believe that a magnificent future is awaiting us," he said.
Nawaz Sharif said as the construction work on Chashma Right Bank Canal was also being initiated soon, this project would bring about revolutionary changes in this area by irrigating thousands of acres of barren land. He said the irrigation of lands would help generate ample resources for the country, develop every sector of the economy, expand industrial activities, encourage import of industrial equipment and machinery, augment exports, enhance inflows of foreign exchange and check inflation. He said that inflation had already come down as compared to the inflation ratio during the previous governments. The loadshedding was 12 to 16 hours and darkness was prevailing in previous years. In such a scenario, no one could imagine of achieving any socio-economic progress and industrial development.
The prime minister said that due to the present government's efforts not only the duration of loadshedding had come down to three to four hours for domestic consumers, but industries were being supplied electricity round the clock. The electricity was being provided at cheaper rates, so that growers and industrialists could compete and had better returns of their produce. He said that various power projects were being installed and completed at a fast pace under China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) including coal and LNG based and solar and wind projects. Now for the first time, coal from Thar, Sindh, would be utilised for power projects. “Why did it not happen in the past? He posed questioned.
The prime minister recalled that Neelum Jhelum project had been lingering on for the last ten years, which increased its cost manifold. But now the work on that project was underway on a fast pace and it would add 960MW of electricity to the national grid by February 2018, he added. The delay on such projects of national importance was very unfortunate, as precious time and public money was wasted, he observed. The prime minister said now with a network of roads, highways and motorways being constructed across the country from Peshawar to Karachi, Gwadar to Khunjrab, Fata, AJK and Gilgit Baltistan (GB), the wheel of progress was moving fast.
He said all the political forces and provinces should join hands and make joint efforts for the development of Fata, AJK and GB as all these areas belonged to whole Pakistan. He referred to Kachhi Canal project in Balochistan and said it would irrigate 72,000 acres of land. "Revolution is coming throughout Pakistan," he added.
The prime minister said his government had initiated Lahore-Islamabad-Peshawar Motorway Project in 1991. Had this concept continued, Pakistan would have been the Asian Tiger today. He said his government after coming to power in 2013 again started work on motorways and after the completion of various sections, now the work was underway on Karachi-Hyderabad and Multan-Sukkur sections of Peshawar-Karachi Motorway. He said under the CPEC project motorway was being constructed from Mirpur to Muzaffarabad, which would be linked to Mansehra and Khunjrab. He said tunnels worth billions of rupees were constructed to link Khunjrab with rest of the country.
The prime minister said his government had provided Rs25 billion for Lowari Tunnel Project at Chakdara-Chitral Road, which had been lingering on for the last 50 years. This project would now be completed after four months as the government had provided Rs24 billion for it.
Recalling his government achievements, he said, “Making tall claims is very easy but to translate the dreams into reality needs practical steps.” He told the gathering that Golen Gol Hydropower Project in Chitral would generate 106MW electricity and it would change the fate of the area through enhancing industrial and agricultural activities. The present government had pumped in unprecedented over Rs1,000 billion for road projects across the country.
Courtesy www.thenews.com.pk
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