Nisar calls for extending provincial status to NAs
By Ali Imran

ISLAMABAD—Chairman Senate Standing Committee on Defence and leading PML leader, Senator Nisar A Memon Wednesday called for extending provisional provincial status to people of Northern Areas for their social, economic and political empowerment.
He said that the people of Northern Areas fought indigenously and had liberated the area from the then Dogra rule and announced their unconditional accession with Pakistan.
He stated this while talking to a group of Northern Areas Legislative Council members and Advisors who called on him here at his residence today.
The elected representatives also discussed with him the problems and issues relating to the development in Northern Areas.
The delegation included Advisor on Food, Agriculture and Information, Cap (Retd) M.Sikandar Ali, Ibrahim Sanai Advisor on Public Work, Physical Planning , communication, public heath , engineering, Noor-ul-Ain Advisor Education , Women Development and Social Welfare , Abdul Hameed Advisor Tourism and Haji Abdul Qadoos Advisor Local Bodies and Rural development. Nisar A Memon said that it is the right of the people of Northern Areas that they should have at least provisional provincial status to bring them at mainstream politics of the country.
He said that people of Northern Areas want that they should have at least an Observer status in the Senate and the National Assembly of Pakistan to highlighted and addressed the issues of their area. The Chairman Senate Standing Committee on Defence said that President General Pervez Musharraf and the present government are taking keen interest in the socio economic development of Northern Areas in order to bring them at par with the developed parts of the country. He referred to the special development package announced by the President Musharraf in October 2004 for the social, economic and political empowerment of the people of Northern Areas.
This was the first phase for development and in the second phase government wanted to give the political rights to the people of the area by giving them a provisional provincial status.
Nisar A Memon said that the government has transferred all powers to the member of Northern Areas Legislative Councils and its advisors are enjoying the status of provincial ministers.
The Advisors can now also hoist the flag of Pakistan on their official vehicles while travelling.
He said that Pakistan-China trade through Karakorum Highway (KKH) provides big economic opportunities to the people of Northern Areas and called upon them to take optimum benefits from it for their own benefits and the socio economic development of Pakistan. Memon also stressed the need for establishing of Dry ports at Gilgit and Baltistan besides Sust dry port to promote trade and benefit maximum people. He also called upon the members of NALC to work unitedly for the betterment of the people of the area and rights of the people.