Oil, gas exploration to be stepped up in SW Pakistan: PM
By Shiraz Afzal - Pakistan Times Staff Correspondent

UTHAL: Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said Wednesday that Pakistan has harvested a record 15 million bales of cotton this year while wheat crop will also surpass the target.

He was speaking at the handing over of Lasbela Textile Mills to Lasbela University of Agriculture, Waters and Marine Sciences, some 135 kilometres west of Karachi in district Lasbela.

He said 2005 is a historic year for the agriculture sector as the country has reaped a record cotton crop and is expecting a bumper wheat crop.

Shaukat Aziz said the farmers will earn billions of rupees from cotton and wheat. When agriculture sector shines it improves the income of growers bringing prosperity in rural areas.

Similarly, rising prices of sugarcane due to slight fall in production will also benefit farmers this year, improving their income, he observed.

He said the government policies coupled with good rains and farmer’s hard labour have brought better results. The Prime Minister said timely rains have filled all reservoirs, dams, barrages and canals. Six months ago, we were worried about water shortage, he added.

Shortage of Reservoirs

He said a sufficient amount of rain water was lost in the sea due to shortage of reservoirs and dams. This water could have been saved if we had dams, he noted.

“We have to build dams to store this water in a way that every province should get its rightful share”, Shaukat Aziz said.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said Wednesday that the government would gear up exploration for oil, gas and metals in Balochistan for the benefit of its people and the country.

He was speaking at the handing-over of the building of Lasbela Textile Mills to the newly set up Lasbela University of Agriculture, Waters and Marine Science, some 135 kilometers from Karachi.

Governor Balochistan Owais A Ghani, Chief Minister Jam Mohammad Yousuf, federal ministers Jehangir Khan Tareen and Naseer Mengal were also present on the occasion.

The federal government has gifted to the University a $ 1 billion textile mill which was established some 20 years ago with the collaboration of Iran over an area of 102 acres.

Balochistan

Shaukat Aziz said Balochistan was rich in natural resources including oil, gas, marble, granite, zinc, lead, copper and other minerals and there was a need now to explore them for the benefit of people of this province as well as Pakistan. “We will use modern and latest technology for mining and exploration for oil, gas and other minerals in the province”, he said.

The Prime Minister pointed out that the Oil and Gas Development Corporation (OGDC) would expand its exploration activities in Balochistan to tap hydrocarbon potentials. This would increase the income of the province and the people would prosper, he observed.

He said that Chinese firms working at Saindak mining project had proposed doubling of copper production from the mine to meet the growing international demand.

“They want to increase their investment in the project to enhance copper production from Saindak project”, he said. Similarly an Australian company working in Balochistan also wanted to extract copper from a mine in Balochistan. Their exploration results were positive, he added. These activities would benefit the people of Balochistan and spur economic activities in the region.●