MASHKAI, Balochistan: Liaquat Ali, a 30-year-old laborer, couldn’t help but burst into tears of joy when he got the key last month for his new two-room, mud-brick house.
Ali’s former mud home was destroyed five years ago in two devastating quakes in Baluchistan, a huge earthquake-prone province of rugged mountains and deserts in Pakistan’s southwest.
According to official figures, over 825 people died and 200,000 had their lives disrupted when a 7.7 magnitude quake struck on September 24, 2013, followed by another one four days later. The quakes destroyed homes and knocked off communication systems. Ali’s home district of Awaran was the worst affected.
“After all those miserable days, I am happy I got a home,” Ali told Arab News.
“I couldn’t imagine that I would get all these facilities in my hometown,” Ali said as he walked around his house and pointed to a solar panel on his rooftop. He said the home had uninterrupted electricity and water and he paid no bills.
“Our kids have a playground and a school,” Ali said. “What more could we ask for?”
But Ali’s family is only one of thousands that need shelter in Mashkai, the largest of the three administrative divisions that make up Awaran district, with a population of 34,625 people living in a smattering of 94 tiny villages.
The building of the 75-house model village by the Pakistan army is but a tiny blip is the gargantuan rebuilding task that Baluchistan requires.
About 21,000 homes were destroyed across Baluchistan during the earthquake, 9,000 of them in Mashkai alone, forcing thousands of people to live in tents near their wrecked homes or flee to other parts of the province.
“The construction of the model village by the army is a good step but to help thousands of the affectees requires some large-scale efforts by the civilian government, which has the prime responsibility of providing shelter,” said Ahmed Iqbal Baloch, a social activist who owns the Baloch language Vsh News channel.
Locals said the government had done little to help them since the earthquakes but Zahoor Ahmed Buledi, the provincial minister for information, claims the provincial government has provided relief.
“Thousands of homes have been built by the provincial government,” he claimed, declining further comment. However, Baloch said no houses had been built. “The government had given Rs50,000 per family, an amount which was insufficient for constructing a house,” Baloch said.
Baluchistan, which borders Iran and Afghanistan, is one of the poorest regions of Pakistan and has some of the worst health indicators in the country.
The province is also home to Baloch militants engaged in a decades-long conflict with the central government which they accuse of discrimination in distribution of revenues from oil, gas and minerals.
The 2013 quake was followed by a spate of attacks on army and paramilitary troops. Two soldiers delivering relief supplies were killed by a roadside bomb near Awaran, rockets fired by the militants narrowly missed military helicopters carrying aid and there were several attacks on relief convoys.
“Since violence was at its peak [when the earthquakes took place], neither government nor NGOs [non-governmental organizations] could enter the area,” said Baloch, the social activist. “Even then Chief Minister Dr. Abdul Malik failed to enter area.”
Security in Baluchistan has improved since as thousands of militants have surrendered amid vast investment from Beijing’s Belt and Road infrastructure splurge. A new transport corridor, the China Pakistan Economic Corridor through Baluchistan, will link Western China with Pakistan’s Arabian Sea port of Gwadar and is due to be operational soon.
While militants vow to disrupt work on the corridor a senior security official in Gajjar, the headquarter of Mashkai, said the military had made major security gains. He described a time when a local college was turned into the head office of the Baloch Liberation Front and no cars could travel in the area after dark.
“The civilian administration was almost non-existent,” said the official, who declined to be named as he was not authorized to speak to journalists on the record. “But now private vehicles pass by without fear, even during nights. The people can send their children to school and bazaars are open. The peace has been restored”
He said the army had launched many projects in the area including renovating schools, setting up a telemedicine facility and opening vocational training centers.
“As the people of this poor and neglected area cannot afford to construct houses, we also thought constructing a model village could bring some relief to lives of some of the [earthquake] affectees,” the official said.
Work on the model village, which cost Rs.15 million, began on May 26 last year and was completed on December 14.
“This mega project has been built on a self-help basis by the army in short span of six months,” a statement by the military’s media wing said, adding that in addition to the homes, the village also had a mosque, children’s play area and soccer and cricket grounds.
But Ali said a lot more needed to be done.
“We need more such houses,” he said. “We need roads and employment to come.”
Balochistan residents get ‘model homes’ five years after quake
Balochistan residents get ‘model homes’ five years after quake
- Army inaugurated Rs.15 million 75-house village in December
- The model village has soccer and cricket grounds, mosque, school and children’s play area
Pakistan finance minister urges all stakeholders to unite for sustainable economic growth
- Pakistan, which narrowly avoided a default last year, is facing low tax-to-GDP ratio, foreign exchange reserves and mounting debts
- Muhammad Aurangzeb hints at ‘Charter of Economy,’ a concept that calls on all stakeholders to create a stable economic environment
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb on Sunday urged all stakeholders to unite for the sake of sustainable economic growth in the country, which has for months been faced with an economic slowdown.
The South Asian country, which narrowly avoided a default in June last year, is facing chronic issues of low tax-to-GDP (gross domestic product) ratio, a shortage of foreign exchange reserves for its mainly import-based economy and mounting domestic and foreign debts.
Speaking to media on Sunday, Aurangzeb reiterated that economic reforms in the country required collective efforts and his government was taking suggestions from stakeholders in order to move toward sustainable economic stability.
“I will urge everyone to unite for the sake of the country,” he said. “When this ‘Charter of Economy’ and other things are talked about, there are three to five such things that we all should unite for.”
The concept of a charter of economy has been discussed extensively in the Pakistani discourse, with calls for a comprehensive agreement between stakeholders to create a stable economic environment. Traders and industrialists advocate for a charter that could move Pakistan away from the decades-old tradition of short-term strategies, which have often proven to be flawed.
Aurangzeb stressed the potential for growth in agriculture and information technology (IT) sectors and the need to expand the tax base for economic stability in the country.
“The segments that need to pay tax, they will have to pay tax,” the finance minister said, noting that Pakistan had only up to 10 percent tax-to-GDP ratio as compared to up to 18 percent in neighboring countries.
“Every single segment in the country will have to contribute.”
Over the decades, Pakistan has failed to generate tax revenues in higher amounts due to a narrow tax base, low compliance rate, an inefficient tax administration and massive tax evasion.
The South Asian country has set an ambitious target of collecting $46 billion through taxes this financial year (July 2024 till June 2025). Besides this, Pakistan has expedited efforts to boost trade and foreign investment to revive its fragile $350 billion economy.
ICC nominates Pakistan’s Babar Azam for T20I Cricketer of the Year award
- Azam played 24 matches and collectively scored 738 runs at an average 33.54 run in last 12 months
- Others nominated for award include Sikandar Raza, Australian Travis Head and India’s Arshdeep Singh
ISLAMABAD: The International Cricket Council (ICC) has nominated Pakistan’s star batter Babar Azam for its Twenty20 International (T20I) Cricketer of the Year award, saying no other Pakistan batter scored as many T20I runs as Azam in the last 12 months.
Other players nominated in the category include Sikandar Raza from Zimbabwe, Australian Travis Head and India’s Arshdeep Singh, according to the ICC.
Azam played 24 matches and collectively scored 738 runs at an average 33.54 run. His highest score was 75 against Ireland.
“With six fifties and close to a hundred boundaries, Babar was Pakistan’s mainstay and the year saw an improvement in his strike rate, with the batter clocking 133.21 runs every 100 deliveries,” the ICC said on its website.
“Still only 30, Babar is primed to break Rohit Sharma’s record as the highest run-getter in T20I cricket soon, sitting just eight behind the Indian’s mark of 4231 runs.”
The winners of the awards are likely to be announced in late January, 2025.
Pakistani Saim Ayub has also been nominated in the category of Emerging Cricketer of the Year along with Sri Lankan Kamindu Mendis, Shamar Joseph of West Indies and England’s Gus Atkinson.
Ayub scored 515 runs from nine one-day internationals (ODIs), averaging at 64.37.
“In Ayub, Pakistan found a new flamboyant southpaw at the top of their batting order. While Ayub was a consistent feature across all three formats, many of his best performances in 2024 came in ODIs,” the ICC said.
“As Pakistan won multiple away series in Australia, Zimbabwe and South Africa to prime themselves for the ICC Champions Trophy defense, Ayub went big as an opener.”
In South Africa, the left-hander sizzled with two tons from the three games and finished as the Player of the Series in a 3-0 clean sweep — South Africa’s first at home. Ayub was also impressive in a low-scoring affair in Australia that saw Pakistan edge past the hosts to clinch their first ODI series triumph Down Under in 22 years.
The 22-year-old also provided Pakistan a handy option with the ball, claiming five wickets and boasting an economy rate of 4.63.
South Africa seal place in World Test Championship final with a tense 2-wicket win against Pakistan
- Needing 148 runs to win, South Africa crashed to 99 for eight owing to superb bowling by Mohammad Abbas
- But Kagiso Rabada went on the attack, hitting 31 not out, before Marco Jansen hit the winning 16 runs
CENTURION: South Africa tailenders Kagiso Rabada and Marco Jansen hung in against relentless fast bowler Mohammad Abbas for a tense two-wicket win in the first test on Sunday and sealed the Proteas’ place in next year’s World Test Championship final.
Jansen (16 not out) overshadowed Abbas’ brilliant figures of 6-54 with a square driven boundary against the fast bowler as South Africa reached 150-8 just after lunch on Day 4 and escaped with a close win in the two-match series.
Abbas, making a comeback after more than three years in the test wilderness, had knocked back South Africa’s tricky chase of 148 runs in a marathon 13-over spell before lunch on Day 4 as the home team limped to 99-8, losing four wickets for three runs.
However, Rabada changed gears in an unbroken 51-run stand with Jansen and made an unbeaten 31 off 26 balls with five fours to seal a memorable victory and denied Pakistan its first test win in South Africa in almost 18 years.
South Africa had started this WTC cycle with a loss against New Zealand, but since then the Proteas drew 1-1 in India and then went on to beat West Indies, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka to stay on top of the table.
India, Australia and Sri Lanka are the other teams still in contention for next June’s WTC final against South Africa at Lord’s.
Captain Temba Bavuma (40) and Aiden Markram (37) had thwarted Abbas for an hour after South Africa resumed at a wobbly 27-3, still needing 121 for victory.
Bavuma’s controversial dismissal punctuated a South Africa collapse in the latter half of first session with Abbas grabbing three off his six balls in a sensational home team collapse.
Bavuma, who made 40, surprisingly didn’t request a television review when replays suggested that Abbas’ ball had brushed the batter’s pocket and didn’t make contact with the inside edge of the bat but the South African skipper walked back to the dressing room.
Abbas bowled an unchanged marathon spell of 13 overs, but had to wait as Markram and Bavuma saw off eight overs from the fast bowlers.
Resuming at 27-3, Bavuma and Markram showed plenty of patience against Abbas’ probing line and length before the fast bowler finally got the breakthrough after the first drinks break.
Abbas was rewarded for his brilliant seam bowling when he beat the outside edge of Markram’s bat and knocked back the off stump.
Bavuma survived a couple of close chances when he successfully overturned an on-field lbw decision against him early in the day and Naseem Shah couldn’t hold onto a sharp catch at fine leg as he overstepped the boundary cushion while grabbing the ball over his head.
South Africa had controlled the game at 96-4 before Bavuma’s dismissal saw Abbas finding the outside edges of David Bedingham (14) and Corbin Bosch’s (0) bat off successive deliveries and in between Kyle Verreynne dragged Naseem Shah’s delivery back onto his stumps.
Abbas found the outside edge of Rabada’s bat in his first over after lunch that fell just short of wicketkeeper Rizwan before both tailenders took the team home.
Pakistan president signs madrasa registration bill into law after months of delay
- The development comes two days Pakistan’s federal cabinet approved tweaks to the Societies Registration Act, 1860
- Every seminary existing before commencement of new law will be required to get itself registered in 6 months it says
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari on Sunday signed into law a bill relating to the registration of madrasas (religious seminaries) in the country, following months of delay despite its passage from parliament.
The Societies Registration (Amendment) Bill, 2024 was passed by both houses of Pakistan parliament in October this year, but it was caught in limbo after President Zardari cautioned parliamentarians to consider international obligations before altering existing procedures to register religious seminaries.
The main sticking point was that the new bill amended the existing procedure for registering madrasas with the education ministry and says the institutions should be affiliated with the industries ministry instead.
“The Societies Registration (Amendment) Bill, 2024 is assented to, as advised by the prime minister,” read a notification signed by President Zardari.
Although the notification was dated Dec. 27, but it was issued to media on Sunday, Dec. 29.
Every religious seminary existing before the commencement of the Societies Registration (Amendment) Act, 2024, if not already registered, shall get itself registered under the Act within six months from the commencement of the Societies Registration (Amendment) Act, 2024, according to the new law.
A seminary established after the promulgation of the new law will get itself registered under the Act within one year of its establishment.
The passage of the bill was widely reported to have been one of the conditions on which the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI) religious party supported the coalition government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and helped it secure two-third majority required in parliament to pass the 26th Constitutional Amendment in October.
The JUI religious party, which rigorously campaigned for the bill in recent months, welcomed Sunday’s development and said it would continue to play its role in “protecting religious seminaries.”
“Religious schools are the fortress of Islam and the guardians of Pakistan’s ideological geography,” it said in a statement.
“Unity of [religious] scholars is important for the protection of religious institutions.”
Pakistan province says warring tribes in violence-hit Kurram district have reached consensus
- Rival factions in Kurram district expected to formally sign agreement on Tuesday, says KP official
- At least 136 have been killed in sectarian and tribal clashes in Kurram district since November
PESHAWAR: The warring tribes in violence-hit northwestern Kurram district have reached a consensus on all contentious points but a formal agreement between them will be signed in the next two days, an official of Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province confirmed on Sunday.
Kurram, a northwestern district of around 600,000 people in KP, has long been a hotspot for tribal and sectarian violence, with authorities struggling to maintain control.
The area’s situation has necessitated travel in convoys escorted by security personnel, yet it failed to prevent an attack on Nov. 21, when gunmen ambushed a convoy, killing 52 people. The attack sparked further violence and road closures, restricting access to medicine, food and fuel in the region as casualties surged to 136.
A grand jirga, or council of political and tribal elders formed by the provincial government, has been attempting to mediate between the rival Sunni and Shia factions this month as protests in Parachinar, the main city in Kurram, have also spread to the southern port city of Karachi.
“Efforts to settle the century-old Kurram dispute are going ahead as members of the jirga have reached a consensus,” Muhammad Ali Saif, the KP government’s spokesperson, said in a statement.
“The Ahle Sunnat side has requested a two-day break to hold their internal discussions,” he said, adding that the jirga will reconvene on Tuesday.
Saif said both warring factions were showing progress in heading toward lasting peace and reaching a settlement to their dispute.
Last week, Saif said authorities had decided to dismantle private bunkers, observation posts used in the fighting by both sides, and given a deadline of Feb. 1 for tribesmen in Kurram to hand over heavy weapons.
Local tribesmen have so far reportedly refused to surrender their weapons, citing concerns about their safety.
Munir Bangash, a Sunni tribal elder and a member of the jirga, confirmed to Arab News that his faction had sought two days to hold consultations before signing the agreement.
“There are no hurdles left in signing the peace agreement but we sought to days’ time to consult all and sundry of our tribe,” Bangash said. “I’m sure there is no hurdle. Everything will be okay after two days.”
Professor Jamil Kazmi, a member of the jirga representing the Shia faction, however, did not seem optimistic about the jirga brokering a permanent solution to the Kurram dispute.
He said certain elements had their “personal vested interests,” without elaborating what those interests were or identifying those elements.
“Yes, an agreement has been reached which will be signed by both parties but I fear the issue can’t be settled on a permanent basis because some elements always sabotage peace efforts,” Kazmi told Arab News.
While the talks continue, the KP government has launched a helicopter service to evacuate people and transport aid and medicines to Kurran as a major highway connecting the district’s main city of Parachinar to the provincial capital of Peshawar has been blocked since last month, triggering a humanitarian crisis with reports of starvation, lack of medicine and oxygen shortages.
In a meeting on Monday, the KP cabinet decided to establish a special police force to secure the Peshawar-Parachinar road, for which 399 people would be recruited.
Shia Muslims dominate parts of Kurram, although they are a minority in the rest of the country. Militant groups like the Pakistani Taliban and Daesh have previously targeted the minority group in the district.
