Ghulam Nabi Zia
Gilgit-Baltistan constitutes one of the most backward areas in the South Asia; the region seems to have missed the development bus completely. Present – day Gilgit has a population of 60 per cent Shias, 40 percent Sunni, Hunza , punia ; Yasin ; Ishkoman and Gupis comprises 100 percent Ismalli population whereas Baltistan contains 96 percent Shias, 2 percent Nurbakhtis (or Nurbakhshis-followers of Mohammed Nur Baksh), and 2 percent Sunnis.
Poor economic conditions and lack of educational facilities have made Gilgit- Baltistan a hub of communal strife, more so during the last two decades. The literacy rates in the region are at 14 percent, far below Pakistan,s national average of 30 percent and the literacy rate of women is abysmally low at 3.5 percent. There is one doctor for every 6,000 people and one hospital bed for 1,500 people. The local people are extremely poor and live in some of the harshest environmental conditions of weather and terrain. In the summers, the mercury often rises above 40 degree centigrade; whereas in the winters, it drops below -25 degree centigrade. The basic facilities, such as electricity, drinking water and elementary health care are virtually non-existent. The region is also rich in natural resources and was once autonomous and self-sufficient in food, the people of the region are today dependent on the Karakoram Highways for most of the supplies, including food. In recent years, a lethal mix of earthquakes, floods and political crisis has rendered this crucial lifeline of the region, vulnerable, jeopardizing the lives of over a million people. The entire region does not have any kind of industry and over 85 percent of the people live below the poverty line.
The people from the region have also been marginalized in the armed forces. In 1947 the Gilgit Scouts was manned totally by the local inhabitants. The share of the locals in forces has been coming down and it is now being increasingly manned by outsiders because the locals mostly Shias, are no longer trusted and such actions have reinforced the belief amongst the local population that the Pakistan state does not consider them reliable. Before Pakistan went nuclear, tourism was the economic lifelines but the explosions mixed with the aftermath of 9/11 have almost dried up this avenue. Despite huge publicity, only 4,000 foreign tourists could be attracted for the K2 Golden Jubilee celebrations in 2004. The resultant unemployment and lack of opportunities have created an explosive situation and have led to widespread unrest and frustration amongst the masses.Less than 10 percent of the hydroelectric potential of the region has been tapped for local use. This especially is ironic as Pakistan intends to build mega dams at Skardu and Bhasha which will inundate millions of acres of populated fertile lands to provide cheap electricity to the rest of Pakistan. Unfortunately, Bhasha Dam has been so planned that the royalty from the dam will go to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) as Article 161 (2) of the Pakistan Constituation stipulates that the royalty and the bulk of the net profits earned from a hydroelectric station shall go to the province where the station is situated. The Bhasha villages, which will house only one percent of the dam, is shown to be in the KP.
Hence earnings from the dam will likey go to KP even though the dam would inundate 32 villages of Diamer districts of Gilgit – Baltistan , with a combined population of 26,000, and thousands of Kanals of agricultural land. More than 125 Km of the KKH will be submerged in the water because of the dam . The People of the region feel it is unfair that their land will be used to build a water reservoir that would benefit the rest of Pakistan when their own territorial status has not been decided. In the abence of constitutional status, the people of Gilgit- Baltistan are apprehensive whether they would get any royalty from dam. Although the govt has recently given assurances about sharing of the royalty, it has failed to assuage the hurt sentiments of the locals, who insist that the entire royalty must come to them. The people have also demanded that royalty paid to KP for the Tarbela Dam since its commissioning to the tune of over Rs 20 billion be insisted spent on the economic development of the region as dam is actually located in Gilgit-Baltistan. Many people in the region complain that hydroelectric, tourism, minerals and trade revenue of the region drained away to the federal coffers and used by the other provinces, which in their views, is nothing but exploitation. They have accordingly been demanding fair returns on the natural resources of the region being used.
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