Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s government recently made a controversial decision to block a planned reduction of Rs10 per liter in petroleum prices, despite a decline in global oil prices. Internationally, petrol and high-speed diesel prices had fallen by about six and five dollars per barrel, respectively, over the past two weeks. Yet the government increased the petroleum levy to a record Rs80 per liter. Instead of passing on the relief to the public, it chose to retain higher prices. The justification offered by the government was that the funds raised from this increased levy would be directed toward development work in Balochistan.

This reasoning has caught national attention. The government announced that the funds saved by maintaining high fuel prices would be spent on the long-neglected infrastructure of Balochistan, including the dangerous N-25 Highway and the second phase of the Kachhi Canal, a Rs70 billion irrigation project. These are significant commitments and mark a rare moment when the federal government explicitly links national policy changes to development in the least developed province of the country.

In a meeting of the federal cabinet, the prime minister acknowledged the reputation of the N-25 as a killer highway, a term I have used for years in my reporting. The road, running from Karachi to Chaman, has claimed more than two thousand lives due to its hazardous condition and lack of proper infrastructure. Shehbaz Sharif vowed to turn this treacherous road into a safe, international-standard highway, stating that the government would dualize it and complete the project in two years. He also pointed out that the........

© The Friday Times