MITHI, Feb 19: Sindh Chief Minister Dr Arbab Ghulam Rahim here on Saturday inaugurated a ‘reverse osmosis plant’ and laid the foundation stone of ‘Thar Lodge’ in Islamkot.
Installation of the reverse osmosis plant will ensure provision of potable water to people of the area. The Thar Lodge, a 20-room accommodation, is being established by the Sindh Coal Authority and the ministry of mines and mineral development to facilitate foreign and local investors.
Speaking at a gathering at the Islamkot circuit house, the chief minister claimed that previous governments had not initiated any significant development work in the backward region of Thar which was even deprived of potable water facility.
He, however, said the present government had laid a network of roads in the area and water was being provided through pipelines from Naokot to Mithi, Mithi to Islamkot, Islamkot to Thahario Halepoto and a number of villages in the vicinity.
He said non-availability of potable water being the main issue of Thar, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz during his election campaign had announced that reverse osmosis plants would be installed in different villages of the region to convert saline water into sweet water. He said one of such plants was functioning in Chelhar and the second had been started in Islamkot with the capacity to provide 75,000 gallons of water to people.
He said the Sindh government was exploring the possibility of establishing 10 more such plants in Thar. He said installation of solar plants in villages which did not have electricity facility was also under consideration.
Dr Rahim said the government was making efforts to construct a 600MW coal-fired power plant at the Thar coal field with the cooperation of the Shenhua Group Corporation of China. He added that a team of the company was already busy in drilling in the coal area.
He said the government was formulating a comprehensive policy to compensate and resettle residents of different villages situated in the coal area who were likely to be displaced.
About reopening of the Khokhrapar route, he said it would enable divided families to visit each other while incurring low expenses and less time.
Sindh Mines and Mineral Development Minister Irfanullah Marwat claimed that 99 per cent of the country’s coal, and 95 per cent of granite and 80 per cent of other minerals existed in Tharparkar.
He appreciated the role of the Chinese team working in the area. He said installation of reverse osmosis plants in remote areas of Thar would ensure provision of potable water.
The Sindh secretary for mines and mineral development, Abdul Hameed Akhund, said Thar had great potential for development and promotion of tourism and a plan was under consideration to establish a desert museum in the Khetlari village. MPA Rajvir Singh also spoke on the occasion.
MPAs Arbab Abdullah, Abdul Razzaq Rahimoo and Ramesh Kumar, Tharparkar District Nazim Arbab Anwar and Sindh Coal Authority director-general Syed Abbas Ali Shah and other officials attended the ceremony.