KARACHI: President Zulfikar Ali Bhutto yeste­r­­day [Nov 28] expressed the desirability of dec­laring the South-Asian Sub-Continent a nuc­lear-free zone, and of banning the introduction of nu­­­clear weapons therein, with concurrence of the countries concerned. Inaugurating the Rs 45-crore Karachi Nuclear Power Project (KANUPP) — an occasion he described as histo­ric for Pakistan, commensurate with the nation’s urge to be part of the nuclear age and in harmo­ny with the march of time — the President said that Pakistan believes in using atomic ene­rgy for pe­­aceful purposes, and as an instrument of development and progress. To this end, he noted that Pakistan has placed its nuclear facilities under international safeguards of the Inter­national Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and em­­­­phasised that “we would like to see other cou­­­­ntries in our region do the same”. — Staff Reporter

[Meanwhile, our Staff Reporter adds,]

Dr Abdus Salam, Scientific Adviser to the President, said ... that in the context of the Government’s philosophy of self-reliance in technical fields, KANUPP will mark the beginning of a new dawn in Pakistan’s scientific, technological and economic life.

Published in Dawn, November 29th, 2022