Tag: Balochistan

  • JUI-F leader Hafiz Hamdullah injured in Mastung blast

    JUI-F leader Hafiz Hamdullah injured in Mastung blast

    Jamiat Ulema Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) leader Hafiz Hamdullah has been injured on Thursday in a blast in the Mastung area of Balochistan, Geo News has reported.

    According to initial details, the senator and JUI-F spokesperson was going to Mangochar when the roadside explosion took place.

    JUI-F has said in a statement that Hafiz Hamdullah was sent to Quetta after he was given initial medical aid and is “out of danger” now.

    The senator’s gunman, also injured in the blast, has been sent to Mir Ghaus Bakhsh Raisani Hospital for further treatment.

    Frontier Constabulary (FC) and Levies officials reached the site and cordoned off the area. Investigations have begun.

  • ‘Striving to bring back abducted football players from Dera Bugti,’ says interior minister

    ‘Striving to bring back abducted football players from Dera Bugti,’ says interior minister

    An operation is underway by the Frontier Corps Balochistan (North) for the recovery of six kidnapped footballers in Dera Bugti, Balochistan. Seven suspects have been arrested so far.

    On Saturday (September 9), six footballers were kidnapped by unknown armed assailants in Dera Bugti while they were on their way to Sibi to participate in the Chief Minister Balochistan Gold Cup tournament.

    “FC Balochistan (North) is tirelessly striving to bring back the abducted football players from #DeraBugti. Your prayers are needed. Hoping for safe recovery. InshAllah,” tweeted caretaker Interior Minister Sarfraz Bugti on Sunday.

    Around 24 players were on their way to Sibi when they were abducted at gunpoint by armed men, reported Dawn. However, the kidnappers released 18 players but kept six. According to the Dera Bugti deputy commissioner, the kidnapped footballers are residents of Dera Bugti and Sui.

  • Local singer sings request to PM Kakar, gets his wish

    Local singer sings request to PM Kakar, gets his wish

    Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar has ordered the restoration of the Panjra bridge in the Bolan area of Balochistan, on the poetic appeal of local singer Gul Meer Jamali.

    The bridge was swept away in July 2022 as biblical floods swept across Pakistan.

    “Orders have been issued to the institutions concerned for the reconstruction of Panjara Bridge,” the interim PM wrote on his official X handle on Friday.

    Kakar ordered the restoration of the bridge after listening to the song sung by local singer Gul Meer Jamali.

    The song went viral on social media, with the singer appealing to the PM to restore the bridge and “fulfil his responsibility towards Balochistan”.

    The Panara Bridge was used to pass the Bolan River on the Quetta-Sukkur Highway.

  • Ali Mardan Domki will be the interim CM of Balochistan

    Ali Mardan Domki will be the interim CM of Balochistan

    Balochistan’s Chief Minister, Abdul Quddus Bizenjo, and the Leader of the Opposition, Malik Sikandar, have mutually decided to appoint Mir Ali Mardan Khan Domki as the caretaker Chief Minister of Balochistan, Geo News has reported. 

    Balochistan Assembly was dissolved on August 12 when Governor Malik Abdul Wali Kakar signed the summary of dissolution.

    Ali Mardan Domki is the son of Mir Hazor Bakhsh Domki, who served as senator from 1975 to 1977. The interim CM belongs to the Lahri area of Balochistan.

    After the dissolution of the Sindh and National Assembly, the Balochistan Assembly was the last one to be dissolved.

    Governer Sindh, Kamran Tessori, signed the summary of dissolution moved by CM Sindh Murad Ali Shah on August 11, a day before the completion of the assembly’s constitutional term.

    Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar is expected to announce the federal interim cabinet in the next few days.

  • Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar is the caretaker Prime Minister of Pakistan

    The suspense is over. Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar, who belongs to Balochistan Awami Party, has been made caretaker Prime Minister of Pakistan.

    Anwaar ul Haq Kakar, elected to the Pakistani Senate from Balochistan in March 2018, previously worked as the advisor to Chief Minister of Balochistan’s information department from January to March 2018 and as the government of Balochistan’s spokesperson from December 2015 to January 2018.
    He has often spoken about on academic and policy-making platforms as an avid book reader and ardent thinker with an understanding of the problems faced by Pakistan’s restive Baloch province.

    Senator Kakar holds a hopeful vision for a powerful Balochistan, committed to the Pakistani nation.

    He graduated from the National Defence University in Islamabad with a bachelor’s degree in political science and sociology. English, Urdu, Persian, Pushto, Balochi, and Brahvi are all spoken by him with ease.

  • Portuguese tourist on world tour killed in road accident in Balochistan

    Portuguese tourist on world tour killed in road accident in Balochistan

    A Portuguese tourist, on a tour of 50 countries, has died on Thursday in a road accident in Chaghai district in Balochistan, Dawn has confirmed.

    Nuno Miguel Vilao Castanheria, 28, crossed into Pakistan from Iran on Wednesday evening on his motorcycle, and was on his way to Quetta when his motorbike collided with a pick up truck near Dalbandin town. At the time, he was accompanied by two German tourists, Tony Pankraz Linder and Nikolas Lang, both of whom were also travelling on their bikes, and Levies personnel.

    Castanheria died on the spot, Chagai Deputy Commissioner Hassan Jan Baloch has confirmed.

    The driver of the pick up truck and his helper were arrested by Levies.

    The Foreign Office has been informed of the death while the body has been sent to Quetta so that it can be shifted to Islamabad and handed over to Portugal’s embassy.

    The Portuguese man started his tour on May 21. He was scheduled to travel through Pakistan’s northern areas before crossing over into India from Wagah border, Dawn has said.

  • Another Pakistani artist receives global praise as Ustad Noor Bakhsh gets featured in Guardian

    Another Pakistani artist receives global praise as Ustad Noor Bakhsh gets featured in Guardian

    Ustad Noor Bakhsh made our hearts swell when a viral video on Twitter showed him playing to an enthralled bar in Berlin. The video received more than a million likes on social media platforms, which is amazing because this was the Baloch musician’s first ever tour to Europe.

    Now, Noor Bakhsh has been featured in the prestigious Guardian, where he opened up about how he came to embrace his musical talent. He revealed that he was born in a nomadic family that herded goats and cattle across Makran in Balochistan. At the age of 12, he was selected by his master, Ustaad Khuda Baksh, to become his pupil. Two years later, Noor Bakhsh began performing at weddings and healing ceremonies, and a year later he was singer Sabzal Sami’s accompanist.

    When Noor Bakhsh was 16, he relocated to Turbat where Sami arranged his marriage so he would stay there- and continued to do so for the next 30 years. Noor Baksh still kept pushing himself to learn to sing by listening to the legendary benju player Bilawal and Misri Khan Jamali, who played the alghoza. He went through tragedies in the meantime, including the death of his first wife and then two sons.

    It was through meeting Ahmed, his manager, who teaches Anthropology at Habib University and discovered him after watching a viral video of him on Facebook, when Noor Bakhsh catapulted to fame. He introduced Noor Bakhsh to British-Pakistani DJ and producer Nabihah Iqbal who was organising the first Boiler Room show in Karachi, and described the Baloch musician as incredible, whom she couldn’t just ignore:

    “His music is just incredible and [his instrument] is kind of unusual, even in Pakistan,” gushed Iqbal.

  • APCC likely to propose Rs900-1,000 billion macroeconomic framework for budget 2023-24

    APCC likely to propose Rs900-1,000 billion macroeconomic framework for budget 2023-24

    The Annual Plan Coordination Committee (APCC) is poised to recommend a substantial macroeconomic framework and the size of the federal development outlay amounting to approximately Rs900-1,000 billion for the fiscal year 2023-24. This recommendation comes ahead of the upcoming budget and is expected to shape the economic policies and priorities of the country for the next fiscal year.

    In an effort to address the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the government plans to allocate Rs90 billion for the controversial Sustainable Development Goals Achievement Programme (SAP) specifically designed for parliamentarians. This proposed allocation is a significant increase from the revised estimates of Rs111 billion allocated in the outgoing financial year.

    Moreover, the government is currently working towards raising the allocation of the SDG Achievement Programme even further, aiming to reach Rs116 billion for the ongoing fiscal year. Notably, parliamentarians from Balochistan and Sindh provinces have primarily presented flood-related schemes under this program during the current fiscal year. The World Bank and Asian Development Bank (ADB) are also contributing $3 billion in loans for flood-related initiatives, highlighting the need to establish mechanisms that prevent overlap and ensure optimal utilization of funds.

    A substantial portion of the development schemes in Sindh and Balochistan, ranging from 50 to 60 per cent, focused on flood-related projects during the outgoing financial year. However, concerns have been raised about one political party, a significant ally of the ruling coalition, demanding that funds on behalf of their parliamentarians be channeled through the party’s political leader for distribution among its members.

    According to The News, the APCC, scheduled to meet today in the Ministry of Planning, will consider approving the macroeconomic framework, which includes a targeted real GDP growth rate of 3.5 per cent and a Consumer Price Index (CPI)-based inflation rate of 21 per cent for the budget of 2023-24. These figures are based on a working paper prepared by the Ministry of Planning and reflect the government’s economic outlook and goals for the upcoming fiscal year.

    The Ministry of Finance has provided an indicative budget ceiling of Rs700 billion for the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) in the next budget. However, the Minister for Planning, under the guidance of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, aspires to increase this amount to Rs800 billion. Additionally, a proposed allocation of Rs200 billion for the Viability Gap Fund (VGF) through public-private partnerships (PPP) would bring the total PSDP size to a proposed Rs1,000 billion at the federal level for the upcoming financial year.

    In an effort to address infrastructure needs, the share of the National Highway Authority (NHA) in the proposed PSDP is expected to decrease, ranging from Rs90 billion to Rs100 billion, due to the NHA’s inability to fully utilise the allocated funds in the ongoing financial year. The government is also considering allocations for flood mitigation and reconstruction efforts, as well as the inclusion of the Diamer Basha Dam project in the upcoming budget for 2023-24.

    As the APCC finalises its recommendations and the budgetary process unfolds, the government aims to strike a balance between addressing developmental needs, achieving SDGs, and ensuring efficient utilization of funds for the benefit of the nation.

  • World Bank commits $213 million for Balochistan’s flood recovery and climate resilience

    World Bank commits $213 million for Balochistan’s flood recovery and climate resilience

    The Board of Executive Directors of the World Bank has granted $213 million in funding to Balochistan for the purpose of improving livelihoods, essential services, and risk protection in communities that were affected by the devastating floods in 2022.

    This financial assistance is part of a larger program established in collaboration with the government to address the aftermath of the floods and build a climate-resilient Pakistan.

    Najy Benhassine, the World Bank Country Director for Pakistan, expressed the organization’s commitment to closely cooperate with the Government of Balochistan in supporting the affected communities. The World Bank aims to provide livelihood support and rehabilitate irrigation and flood protection infrastructure.

    These efforts will not only restore the livelihoods of the affected population but also enhance their resilience to potential future climate-related disasters and natural hazards. The project aligns with the comprehensive package of post-flood rehabilitation and resilient reconstruction program agreed upon with the authorities.

    The floods of the previous year were a result of record monsoon rains in the southern and southwestern regions of Pakistan, compounded by glacial melt in the northern areas. The calamity affected nearly 33 million people in the country, which has a population of 220 million. Tragically, the floods claimed over 1,700 lives and caused substantial damage to homes, crops, bridges, roads, and livestock.

    The Integrated Flood Resilience and Adaptation Project (IFRAP) outlined by the World Bank will provide housing reconstruction grants to approximately 35,100 homeowners. It will also focus on restoring essential services by rehabilitating damaged community infrastructure and facilities, such as water supply systems, irrigation networks, roads, and community facilities.

    Balochistan, with its geographical location, socioeconomic background, and vulnerability to climate change, faces significant risks from natural disasters. Yoro Sidibe, a Senior Water Specialist at the World Bank, emphasized that the project aims to provide economic opportunities to the affected communities while ensuring social inclusion and participation. Additionally, it will enhance institutional capacity for preparedness and response to future disasters.

    The World Bank expects that the Integrated Flood Resilience and Adaptation Project will benefit approximately 2.7 million people in selected communities across Balochistan’s calamity-declared districts. The project’s objectives include the restoration of degraded watersheds and the strengthening of institutional capacity at both the provincial and local levels.

  • JI chief Siraj-ul-Haq attacked by suicide bomber in Balochistan

    JI chief Siraj-ul-Haq attacked by suicide bomber in Balochistan

    A convoy led by Siraj-ul-Haq, the Ameer of Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), was attacked by a suicide bomber on Friday in Zhob, Balochistan.

    The Secretary General of the party, Ameer ul Azeem, has confirmed that an explosion took place near the convoy. He further said that the attacker has been killed.

    Siraj-ul-Haq and all members of his convoy are safe.

    The JI chief was on his way to address a rally in Zhob when the attack took place.