I wrote for @TFT_ about my travels from #Quetta to Uthal to Gwadar & back to Quetta via Turbat & Panjgur. While traveling across more than 2,000 kilometers, the following problems and the potential of this region were once again revealed to me:
1/n https://www.thefridaytimes.com/problems-and-potential-of-balochistan/

The starting point of the journey was 813-km long N-25 highway. This highway is in good shape but it is a single carriageway with two narrow lanes. Lack of space is the single biggest cause of accidents on this highway, which has given it the title of “Killer Highway.”
2/n

The 587-km long Makran coastal highway is fully deserted. One cannot see any vehicle coming from either side for 15 to 20 minutes at a time. Also, there are no quality places to rest and dine on the highway, compelling travelers to drive continuously all the way to Gwadar.
3/n

Upon entering #Gwadar, the scenario is very underwhelming in the context of the hype created by successive governments. Apart from the Marine Drive on the West Bay, there is nothing spectacular about the infrastructure of the port town.
4/n

Electricity supply failure is a huge problem in #Gwadar along with water scarcity. Locals feared another water crisis would be knocking at their door in the next two months unless heavy rainfalls fill the dams supplying water to Gwadar.
5/n

M-8 & d N-85 highways have reduced the travel time from Quetta to Gwadar to just 12 hours from 24 hours. Although this is a relief for people making this journey frequently, both these highways are not equipped for heavy traffic.
6/n

M8 is just like another highway & not accurate to call it Motorway 8. N-85 from Hoshab till Surab has received several patchworks while the volume of traffic is low. These roads in no way can accommodate large volumes of cargo traffic if Gwadar port kicks off under CPEC.
7/n

Entering the city center of Turbat, one gets the pleasant and rare scenes of modern development in the peripheries of Balochistan. The roads are wide and well-constructed. If there is one thing former chief minister Dr. Malik Baloch did right, it was that he developed Turbat.
8/n

The stark difference in development levels of Panjgur and Turbat is clear when one enters the former. In the past, this district has been badly ignored by representatives of the district. However, under the current government, a lot of infrastructure projects are under...
9/n

... construction in Panjgur. These can uplift the infrastructure of this district. A date processing plant built by Pakistan Army is in the final stages of completion. Once operational, this plant can be extremely helpful in uplifting the date economy of the Panjgur.
10/n

Three most common problems in all these regions:
1) Lack of sources of Livelihood.
2) Water scarcity:
3) Electricity supply failure

[End]