CM says besides coal, Sindh government has invested in roads, water supply systems, health and education
Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah addresses a press conference on Wednesday. Photo: NNI
MITHI:
Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah said the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) government has transformed Thar because the sand-swept desert and its rich resources have the potential to change Pakistan.
Speaking at the inauguration of Thar Institute of Engineering, Science and Technology – affiliated to NED University, Karachi – on Mithi-Islamkot road, Shah said Thar’s coal reserves are owned by its people and will reshape the future of the country.
He announced that once phase II of the institute is completed in 2028, it will become a full-fledged university.
The chief minister recalled that when the PPP came to power in 2008, the then President Asif Ali Zardari continued Shaheed Benazir Bhutto’s vision of developing the natural resources of Thar. He noted that the travel time from Karachi to Mithi, once eight hours, has now been reduced to four with improved road network. “I’m looking for a driver who can cover the same distance in three hours, and I’m sure he must be here in the crowd.”
The CM said if anyone wanted to travel faster, they could take a flight from Karachi to Islamkot in less than half an hour.
Shah said the provincial government had invested in water supply projects, reverse osmosis plants and health facilities in Thar, along with coal-based power and fertilizer generation projects. He added that PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari had earlier directed that households consuming up to 100 units of electricity in Islamkot should be provided with free electricity as “local communities have the first right to Thar’s resources”.
Focusing on education, Shah said 125 graduates have already left the institute, many of whom are employed or self-employed internationally. He pledged his full support for Phase II, which will include hostels for boys and girls, an administrative block and new courses in English, management, mechanical and electrical engineering. “By 2028, when phase II is completed, we will transform this institute into a university for the people of Thar,” he said.
Sindh Universities and Boards Minister Muhammad Ismail Rahu said the PPP had established 16 universities in Sindh since 2008, compared to 14 in the province’s first 62 years. He criticized the federal government for freezing the budget of the Higher Education Commission, pointing out that Sindh alone now provides Rs 43 billion annually to universities, more than Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan combined.
