On Thursday, Pakistan again postponed approval of the Rs 36 billion projects designed to provide security for Chinese nationals who would be involved in building the multi-billion dollar Mainline I (MLI) project.
The project has been postponed for nearly two years and failed to get the green light from the authorities after the previous government removed the security component of the $6.8 billion MLI project from the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) excluded.
The Rs 36 billion safeguards for upgrading the Pakistan Railways MLI project have been submitted to the Central Development Working Party (CDWP) for approval.
However, the CDWP returned the program to Pakistan Railways with instructions to first object to the program and trust China.
Attacks by enemy forces on CPEC, the flagship project of China’s Silk Road Initiative, have escalated in recent months, resulting in the deaths of Chinese and Pakistani citizens, and this has caused resentment in the Chinese government.
Despite the seriousness of the situation, the bureaucracy continues to treat the matter as if nothing had happened.
Under the direction of the Vice President of the Planning Commission, Dr Jehanzeb Khan, the CDWP, which meets almost weekly, has not prioritized the security project.
The main objective of the Rs 36 billion project is to provide foolproof security for the construction camps and Chinese citizens who will be deployed during the construction works for the modernization of the MLI project.
