Adnan Aamir
Quetta: In an announcement which is considered a landmark in development of Balochistan, 12 new projects in the province have been officially made part of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), read official press release by Government of Balochistan, on Thursday.
This decision was taken in the 6th Meeting of Joint Coordination Committee (JCC) in Beijing China from 27th to 29th of December. JCC is the supreme decision making body of CPEC.
Pakistani delegation was led by Federal Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal and included Chief Ministers of Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sindh and Gilgit-Baltistan.
Read also: CPEC will Change Destiny of the Region: CM Balochistan
Total 30 new projects for the CPEC were approved in the meeting and 12 of them are based in Balochistan.
Inclusion of 12 new projects for Balochistan was termed as “A historical success for coalition government under leadership of Chief Minister Nawab Sanaullah Zehri” – by the press statement of Government of Balochistan.
Chief Secretary Balochistan, Saifullah Chatta, signed agreements with Chinese companies on behalf of government of Balochistan.
Following are the 12 new projects for Balochistan approved in 6th JCC meeting:
1) Quetta Mass Transit Train project worth Rs. 25 billion
2) Nok Kundi-Mashkel-Panjgur road, 317 KM in Length worth Rs. 25 billion
3) Quetta Water Supply project worth Rs. 40 billion
4) Industrial estates in Bostan and Khuzdar
5) Work on upgradation of N50 highway
6) Upgradation of Khuzdar-Basima Road
7) Upgradation of Zhob D.I Khan Road 210 KM in length
8) Establishment of Five new berths at Gwadar Port
9) Construction of Eastbay Expressway Phase-II in Gwadar
10 Establishment of Bao Steel Park in Gwadar
11) Establishment of Stainless Steel factory in Gwadar free zone
12) Establishment of Photon Automobile plant in Gwadar Free zone
However, total worth of all 12 projects was not disclosed in the press release issued by Government of Balochistan.
Dubbed as the game changer project since its inception, CPEC has increased in volume from $46 billion to $57 billion after approval of new projects in 6th JCC meeting.
PML-N led federal government was criticized in the past to ignore Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in CPEC projects. Approval of new projects in 6th JCC is believed to address the concerns of Balochistan and KP to a greater extent.
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