By Rafiullah Mandokhail
ZHOB: The southwestern region of Pakistan – Balochistan is blessed with vast area, long coastline and wide border with Iran and Afghanistan but with clustered population. The largest province of the country in terms of area spreads over an area of 347,190 sq kilometers, forming 43.6 percent of the total area of the country. According to the 2017 census, the total population of Balochistan is calculated 12.34 millions that contributes to 5.8% of the total population of the country.
Besides the Taftan (Pak-Iran border – Gold Smith) and Chaman (Pak-Afghan border – Durand line), the long-awaited Badini trade terminal – adjacent to Muslim Bagh tehsil of Killa Saifullah district – has also been opened in September 2020 for the trade with neighboring Afghanistan.
Former Chief Minister Balochistan Jam Kamal Alyani, flanked by Commander Southern Command Lt Gen Muhammad Wasim Ashraf, Inspector General Frontier Corps (North) Maj Gen Fayyaz Hussain Shah, provincial ministers Zia Langov, Mitha Khan Kakar, MPA Molvi Noorullah, members the chamber of commerce, traders and notables unveiled the plague to inaugurate the Badini trade terminal.
60-year-old Haji Abdul Sattar Shahizai, a notable from the Badini says, despite the strategic and geographical importance, the residents of the area have been deprived of basic necessities of life including clean drinking water, electricity, education, health facility, communication facility and roads for decades. Due to lack of health facilities, the people have no option but to take the female patients to Killa Saifullah civil hospital at the cost of thousands of rupees. Due to the poor condition of road, most of the expectant women expire on the way to health facility. The strip, which stretches from Tarkha to Sarei area, lacks all the basic amenities of life.
Shahizai laments that, thousands of acres of land remained uncultivated due to inattention of the provincial government and the elected representatives.
Killi Haji Khwazhay is a village comprises dozens of mud-stone houses, yet in this modern era, the people of the village are forced to live a miserable life. The children either fetch water or graze their cattle. Their school building is in a dilapidated condition and the school teacher is often absent due to lack of transport facility.
A seminary teacher 35-year-old Ehsanullah Jalalzai belongs to the same village of union council Badini. Two years ago, he had quit a teaching job in a Loralai seminary and stepped in the area with a commitment to educate the children of his own village. He says, when the school bell rang for the first time in the history, the children made their way to school and with the passage of time children from adjacent villages also thronged the newly opened school. In a short span of time, the number of students both boys and girls reached almost one hundred. But last year the self-help established school became closed due to the prevailing poverty and non availability of resources. Children coming from other villages had an intense desire to study despite covering long distances to get to the school but unfortunately it was difficult to remain functional.
“Badini comprises around 20,000 population, the schools have been closed since long. Neither a new school has been built nor the dilapidated school buildings have been repaired. A state-run primary school in Killi Khwazhay also wore a deserted look,” he laments.
Ehsanullah says, the school building was constructed some thirty years back that today presents a picture of negligence. The dilapidated condition of school exposes the government’s tall claims to improve education in far-off areas of Balochistan.
“The school building was constructed in 1988, however the classes have not been started even after three decades due to the apathy on the part of the concerned authorities,” adding due to lack of repair work, cracks have been developed in its roof and floor.
Ehsanullah says, during the previous government of Pashtoonkhwa-MAP, solar water supply scheme was provided to his village that decreased the water shortage problem to some extent but rest of the area has still water shortage problem.
“The Basic Health Unit in the area has been closed for a long time. Only polio teams visit the facility to administer anti-polio drops to the children. Neither doctor has been posted nor is medicine available at the BHU,” adding the area also lacks communication facility, as there is no mobile tower over here. People have to travel almost twenty kilometers to make a phone call. He adds.
Highlighting the importance of the area, he says, Badini is an agricultural area. Solar system for irrigation and bulldozer hours for leveling agricultural land should be provided to the farmers on urgent basis. The climate of the area is ideal for growing wheat, tobacco, almonds and fruit including apple.
When contacted member Balochistan assembly Molvi Noorullah Khuidadzai, he did not wish to comment on the issues of Badini and the terminal inauguration.
The distance from the provincial capital Quetta to the Badini border is 200 km. Now it is hoped that the newly opened trade route will not only change the destiny of the local people of the region, but will also be beneficial for the trade. The region’s production of seasonal vegetables, fruits as well as minerals will have access to Central Asia via Afghanistan. Badini is the liaison between Zhob division, Punjab and KP. Access to industrial goods from Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to Afghanistan and Central Asian countries will be possible in hours instead of days.
According to the Balochistan Chamber of Commerce and Industries (BCCI), the closure of Pak-Afghan border always resulted in financial losses to imports and exports between the two bordering countries. Opening the business points are expected to facilitate the traders. Modern communication facilities and banking system would also be provided to the traders.
BCCI estimates that Balochistan Customs is generating Rs. 30 billion revenue annually from the current import and export. The opening of the Badini terminal would further boost economic activities and enhance the revenue. The route would promote trade among Iran, Afghanistan and Central Asia. Moreover it would increase the country’s exports and would also save the valuable foreign exchange. There are reservoirs of precious stones and coal in the border areas that would have access to Punjab factories. Zhob and Killa Saifullah have vegetables, fruits and other commodities and their access to Central Asia would be made possible by setting up processing units in Killa Saifullah district. A freight truck covers a distance of 1000km from Lahore to Chaman in 16 hours; this journey to Badini is 600km that takes only ten hours. Above all, the establishment of workshops, hotels and filling stations will directly benefit the local population.
BCCI vice president Haji Akhter Kakar terms the government’s move as the first step towards overcoming the regional backwardness. He says, it has been a long-standing demand of BCCI, traders and the people of the region to open Badini gateway. The Badini border is not only suitable for trade but can also reduce the burden on Chaman border. The border between Balochistan and Afghanistan is over 1100 kilometers long. Seven districts of the province, Quetta, Killa Abdullah, Killa Saifullah, Pishin, Zhob, Noshki and Chagi share borders with Afghanistan. There is only one border for trade and transportation that is also being used for Afghan transit trade, NATO supplies and transportation of people to and from Afghanistan. One of the advantages of the Badini border is that the distance to Kabul will be reduced, as it is 500km closer as compared to Chaman.
After opening the Badini trade route, spokesperson government of Balochistan Liaqat Shahwani has tweeted; five more gates connecting Pakistan with Iran would be opened for trade.
Prime Minister Imran Khan led government has decided to set up 18 markets on Pak-Afghan and Pak-Iran borders. 12 markets will be built along the Afghan border and 6 along the Iranian border. These markets are expected to not only provide better trade opportunities to the people living along bordering areas but also curb cross-border smuggling.
In November 2020, ex-governor Balochistan Amanullah Yasinzai during his visit to bordering district Zhob to inaugurate BUITEMS campus had said that Qamar Din gateway between Pakistan and Afghanistan would also be opened for trade.
