Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal speaking to reporters regarding Thar Coal Block-II in Islamkot on Friday. PHOTO: SABAH
HYDERABAD: Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal, who also holds the portfolio of Federal Planning and Development Ministry, has envisioned Tharparkar district of Sindh as the energy capital of Pakistan.
“The foundations for making the desert region [of Therparkar] an energy hub has been laid,” Iqbal said on Friday while briefing the media in Tharparkar after a visit to Thar Coal Block-II in Islamkot.
The minister claimed that the coal energy projects in Tharparkar were an example of development-oriented cooperation between the Sindh and federal governments.
He also praised the economic cooperation between China and Pakistan and denounced elements which are trying to create wrong perception against the Chinese investments.
“CPEC [China Pakistan Economic Corridor] has a vital role in Pakistan’s economic development achieved during the last three years,” Iqbal noted.
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He also commended the religious harmony between Hindu and Muslim communities which have been peacefully dwelling in the desert area for centuries.
"This was the vision of Quaid-e-Azam [Muhammad Ali Jinnah]," he said. "Although Pakistan was created in the name of Islam, Quaid-e-Azam envisaged a country where people of all religions, faith, race and culture could live together in harmony and peace."
He recalled that until a few years ago the people even from other parts of Pakistan were reluctant to live and work in Thar. “But now people from even other countries have started to come and take part in the desert region's development,” he added.
Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company CEO Shamsuddin A Shaikh briefed the minister about the status of the power project which is slated to generate 660 megawatt electricity by next year.
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