Chinese Companies Playing Havoc In Balochistan

Balochistan

Chinese stakeholders investing in Balochistan has grown steadily over the past two decades, however, they are destroying the environment and marine life, besides denying jobs to locals.
On September 7, Aslam Bhootani, a lawmaker from Balochistan, decried ongoing exploitation by the Chinese companies working on various power projects in Balochistan, reported to sources.
Bhootani charged that the Chinese companies are playing havoc in the area, he affirmed, asking the government to rein in the companies.
Bhootani also asserted that it seemed those companies considered themselves not answerable to anyone as they had been operating under the protection of the Pakistani Army, reported to sources.
According to him, the Chinese companies, which had set up a coal plant at Lasbela, were destroying the marine life and ending the livelihoods of local fishermen.
The Pakistani army and the central government are controlling the region of Balochistan with an iron fist and exploiting its precious resources. Now, the area is open to China for exploitation with the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) deal and ongoing projects.The acquisition of Gwadar port, exclusion of Baloch firms and labour from Gwadar and associated CPEC projects, exclusion of native fishermen and destruction of natural ambience have intensified pre-existing feelings of regionalism in Balochistan, with Baloch nationalist forces either wholly rejecting the project or voicing for a greater share in them, reported to sources.