Prime Minister Imran Khan has expressed concerns over the slow pace of development projects in Balochistan, saying that he will personally hold review committee meetings every month to remove impediments in the completion of the projects.

As per a statement by the PM's Office (PMO), the prime minister chaired a high-level meeting in Islamabad to review the progress of Southern Balochistan Development Package.

The PM voiced his concerns when he was informed that only one meeting of the apex committee was held in a year. He emphasised on holding meetings of the apex committee every month, while that of the executive committee every fortnight to speed up 200 development projects worth 655 billion rupees.

The PMO said that the premier also directed the authorities to complete Turbat Airport and build two nursing colleges in Gawadar and Turbat at the earliest.

He said that the issues of Balochistan are different from rest of the country as its population is scattered. Due to long distances, we have to find out-of-the-box solutions for the province, the PMO statement quoted the PM as saying.

PM Khan directed the Balochistan government to revamp its governance structure at the grassroots level, not only to accelerate the pace of work on development projects but to also improve the service delivery to the people.

Mega development package announced: PM brings southern Balochistan districts into sharp focus

The Ministry of Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, Ministry of Energy, Ministry of Maritime Affairs, and the Government of Balochistan were directed by the PM to closely work together to accelerate the work on transport, energy, and infrastructure projects under the development package.

This article first appeared in Business Recorder on Nov 13, 2021.