GILGIT: President Mamnoon Hussain has said that economic growth of the country has slowed and many mega projects, including power projects, have been suffering because of the protest sit-ins of the PTI and PAT in Islamabad.

Talking to media persons at the Governor House here on Tuesday, the president also said that the Pakistan International Airline (PIA) and Pakistan Steel Mills were a burden on the economy.

It would be beneficial to privatise the loss-making public units such as PIA and Pakistan Steel, he said.

Presently, PIA was facing a loss of billions. He said usually the airlines world over employed 120 employees per flight, but the ratio in PIA was 700.

The president said the matter of increasing PIA flights between Islamabad and Gilgit-Baltistan would be taken up with the authorities concerned and a decision would be taken soon.

Mr Hussain said Gilgit-Baltistan had a capacity to generate 40,000 megawatts of electricity and the country would utilise its resources to overcome the power crisis.

The president said Gilgit-Baltistan had a huge potential for hydel power generation and the government would complete the construction of the Diamer and Dasu dams.

Earlier, a delegation of the GB government called on the president. It comprised Speaker of the Gilgit-Bal­tis­tan Legislative Assembly Wazir Baig, Op­­po­­sition leader Haji Janbaz Khan, cabinet members Ali Madad Shaar, Didar Ali and Haji Gulbar and JUI-F member Rahmat Khaliq.

Published in Dawn, October 22nd, 2014