QUETTA: Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Abdul Qudoos Bizenjo has said that the province needs more resources for launching development projects and improving people’s lives.

He was speaking at a function here on Thursday held in connection with the distribution of the government’s grant-in-aid cheques among the Balochistan Bar Council and district bar associations.

He said establishment of a peaceful environment in Balochistan was necessary for its development and for the purpose the federal government should provide the province additional financial resources.

The chief minister said the federal government should help Balochistan in preparing a people-friendly budget for the next fiscal year. The province, he added, needs additional financial resources to prepare a budget which could bring about an improvement in the life of the people.

Opposition Leader in the Balochistan Assembly Malik Sikandar Khan, Senior Minister Noor Mohammad Dummar, Adviser to the Chief Minister on Home and Tribal Affairs Ziaullah Langove, MPA Sana Baloch, Secretary of Law and Parliamentary Affairs Asghar Harifal and Advocate General Asif Reki were present on the occasion.

The chief minister said Balochistan is the largest province of the country in terms of area and it needs additional financial resources to maintain law and order in far-flung areas. The federal government should provide additional financial resources to Balochistan because the amount the province gets under the current formula for the distribution of funds among provinces is not enough to fulfil its financial needs, he added.

He praised the role of lawyers in creating awareness among the people about their rights and said that they gave guidance to the government and the people.

He said the provincial government had distributed Rs63 million among lawyers’ bodies of the province because they have limited resources.

Mr Bizenjo said the provincial government was aware of the problems being faced by the lawyers’ community and would take measures for solving them.

The chief minister paid tribute to the lawyers who sacrificed their lives for upholding the rule of law. The nation cannot forget the day when more than 50 lawyers were killed in a suicide attack in Quetta on Aug 8, 2016, he said, adding that the provincial government would use all its resources to provide help to the families of the martyred lawyers.

Published in Dawn, June 3rd, 2022