ISLAMABAD, May 21: Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan made his first public appearance on Wednesday after a four-year detention when he visited Academy of Sciences amid tight security.

Sources close to Dr Khan told Dawn that the government had relaxed restrictions imposed on the nuclear scientist and he had been allowed to meet his friends.

During his visit to the academy, situated near the Supreme Court building on the Constitution Avenue, Dr Khan met his old friends, including Dr Mubashir-ur-Rehman. Dr Khan remained there for over two hours.

During his visit, the sources said, Dr Khan expressed his concern over prevailing political, power and food shortages.

The nuclear scientist was guarded by security personnel of Strategic Command Force (SCF), which provides security to nuclear installations and scientists.

Dr Khan was arrested on Jan 31, 2004 under the Security Act of Pakistan 1952 for allegedly transferring nuclear technology to other countries.

The sources said that 72-year-old scientist had come out to ‘rescue the country from the prevailing power crisis by helping the government generate power through its nuclear capability’.

Dr Khan had been asked by President Pervez Musarraf last year to assist the government in power generation but it is learnt that he had have refused to help. However, the nuclear scientist is said to have agreed to help the coalition government in overcoming power shortage.

The sources said 95 per cent uranium enrichment was required for manufacturing nuclear arms but for power generation, only five per cent enrichment was needed.

Water and Power Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf was unavailable for comments despite repeated attempts to contact him. However, a Pakistan People’s Party leader said that the government was not planning to set up new nuclear power plants.

Meanwhile, people welcomed the government’s decision to relax restrictions on Dr Khan and hoped that he would be allowed to live ‘a normal life’.

Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi had hinted last months that government was considering lifting restrictions on Dr A.Q. Khan.

Earlier, the government had allowed Dr Khan’s relatives to meet him at his residence where he had been under a virtual house arrest.

Dr Khan had reportedly given an interview to an international news agency claiming that he had confessed that he had transferred nuclear assets to other countries ‘just to save his country’.