GWADAR: Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said Saturday that the federal government is spending a record 134 billion rupees on mega projects for development in Balochistan.

!This has never happened before in the history of Balochistan,! the Prime Minister said amid applause, while speaking at the ground breakingceremony of Gwadar Port Civic Center.

Governor Balochistan Owais Ahmed Ghani, Chief Minister Jam Mohammad Yousuf, Minister for Port and Shipping Babar Khan Ghauri, Minister for Social Welfare and Special Eduction Zubaida Jalal and Minister for Petroleum Naseer Mengal were present on the occasion.

The Prime Minister said that this year rupees 21 billion have been allocated for Balochistan under the annual development programme, which is about 10.5 percent of the total outlay.

This is more than the share of Balochistan in terms of population ratio to other provinces, he added.

He said the coastal highway which remained neglected during the previous governments has been completed. This highway has changed the life style wherever it touches along the coast of Balochistan, he noted.

The Prime Minister said that a major change has been brought about in Gwadar during the last four years due to the mega projects and brisk development activity taking place in the area.

!These results have been possible with the help of sincere, honest and committed efforts of the government,! he said.

Anybody spreading negative propaganda will be defeated in his efforts as people want to see development and better life rather than just hollow slogans, he said.

Shaukat Aziz vowed to take Pakistan forward on the road of development and prosperity and added that never before in the history of Pakistan such development schemes were carried out by any government.

People have been witnessing progress on these projects and therefore they would reject pessimistic elements, he said.

He said when President Pervez Musharraf took charge six years ago, the government did not have sufficient funds even to pay salaries as the national kitty was empty.

The Prime Minister said that whatever was visualized by President Musharraf six years ago has been realized and added that more development would take place in Balochistan.

He said that Gwadar was a backward town and the government wanted to convert it into a modern city equipped with all facilities and resorts to attract local and foreign tourists.

Gwadar port will generate economic activity in the area and road network will connect it with Afghanistan, Iran and Central Asia as the most important route in the region for transportation, he said.

He said the government will build a new airport at Gwadar with all the modern aviation facilities and renovate the existing airport and improve terminal building to facilitate the current air traffic.

This airport will accommodate large aircraft and jets. He said the second phase of Gwadar port will start after the completion of phase-I. The Gwadar Port Authority (GPA) has been asked to make this port operational and market its facilities.

Shaukat Aziz advised the people of Balochistan to welcome investment in Gwadar. !The world has changed and this is the era of globalization and you must welcome investors in Gwadar,! he added.

Citing example of Dubai, he said investors can freely set up a factory or buy property there and Gwadar should also open up for such investment. Whoever talks against this approach is not a friend of the people of Gwadar and Pakistan, he observed.