Some say that 69 years is a very small period in the life of a nation to develop itself or make its mark while the others opine that its a good enough period for a nation to show its worth, character and calibre. At the completion of 69 years of our national life , I wonder what are our unique and glorious achievements that we can proudly put before the world.
Despite rampant corruption , huge energy crisis, violence , extremism, floods, earthquakes , political instability and poor governance, Pakistan has come a long way and has made tremendous progress in many fields.
At the time of independence, we had nothing and were being considered not to survive for more than six months. Pakistan was granted freedom eight months before the appointed date so that due to lack of adequate preparations and arrangements, it is not able to sustain itself. The country was the poorest in the world. We had no natural resources except agricultural land . There were practically no industries or business establishments to speak of. We had no industrial raw material and no industrial or commercial groups. We had no modern banks. Power production was negligible. There were no roads, railways or transport and communication or other economic infrastructure. Few technicians, professionals and experts existed amongst the 75 million population of Pakistan as Muslims of India were mostly peasants, artisans , labourers and soldiers. The distance between the two parts of Pakistan with substantially different problems, different resources and without any good transport and communication links , was aggravating the problems faced by the newly born state . To add insult to injury , the govt of India didnt pay us our share of financial and military assets and we had no money to run the business of the state. We had no buildings to establish offices and run an effective administration.
Nevertheless our founding fathers I.e Quad e Azam, Khan Liaquat Ali Khan and others didnt lose hope and worked day and night to make Pakistan a success story. The govt officers who chose to be the part of the civil services of Pakistan and their newly appointed staff began to work in shacks and tents and laid the foundation of an effective administration. Doctors and nurses began to serve in hastily improvised and makeshift hospitals and camps . Everybody was full of zeal and exuberance. Millions of refugees were coming to Pakistan every month. Their rehabilitation was a huge challenge and the infant state could not manage to cope with it with its meagre resources. Nevertheless, we rose to the challenge and with donations from some friendly countries and due to sheer grit , strong determination , sagacity and hardwork of our founding leaders , we were able to take off.
Sincerity and hard work always pay back. Our leaders and civil service were able to deal with the problems accompanying the partition with remarkable success in the next few years. By the 1950s , they were able to turn to the difficult business of developing economy , repairing the already existing but damaged infrastructure and building new one despite several and serious bottlenecks.
Prophets of gloom and doom were greatly disappointed by the radical economic changes that began in Pakistan in the late 1950s. It is difficult to believe that by middle 60s, our rate of economic growth had become double the rate of population , investment was reaching a healthy 20 percent and savings exceeded 10 percent of domestic resources. Prices were stable , exports were expanding and foreign exchange earnings were increasing at the rate of of 7.5 percent per year. Pakistan was widely believed among those half a dozen countries of the world with the greatest promise of steady economic growth and progress . Notwithstanding our pitiful capital resources and myriad problems at the time of independence , our performance was outstanding.
Average annual real GDP growth rates were 6.8% in the 1960s. During the 1960s, Pakistan was seen as a model of economic development around the world, and there was much praise for its economic progression. The capital Karachi was seen as an economic role model around the world, and there was much appreciation for the way its economy was progressing. Many countries sought to emulate Pakistan's economic planning strategy and one of them, South Korea, copied the city's second "Five-Year Plan"; the World Financial Centre in Seoul is modeled after Karachi.
The construction of the Karakoram Highway aka Friendship Highway started in 1959 . This road has been classified as World’s highest paved international road that serves as a terrestrial link for the trade between Pakistan and China . It is referred to by many as the Eighth Wonder Of The World and can be termed as one of the biggest achievements and symbol of Pak China cooperation.
The Mangla Dam , a multipurpose dam located on the Jhelum River in the Mirpur District of Azad Kashmir, Pakistan, is the 9th largest dam in the world and is also an accomplishment of Ayub khan's era .
Tarbela Dam's construction was started by Ayub Khan in 1968 on the Indus River, at Tarbela in Pakistan. The Dam is classified as the World’s largest earth filled dam. While it is termed as the 2nd largest dam by its structural volume.
Between 27 October 1958 and 25 March 1969 under Ayub Khan Pakistan economic growth averaged 5.82% growth during his eleven years in office. Manufacturing growth in Pakistan during this time was 8.51%, far outpacing any other time in Pakistani history. It was the time when Pakistan first got an automobile industry, a cement industry and few other heavy manufacturing industries. A large industrial setup had come into existence during this era.
In 1959, the country begin the construction of its new capital city. The govt designed the master plan of the city based on a grid plan which was triangular in shape with its apex towards the Margalla Hills. The capital was not moved directly from Karachi to Islamabad; it was first shifted temporarily to Rawalpindi in the early sixties and then to Islamabad when the essential development work was completed in 1966.
During 70s, Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto established Pakistan steel mills , Heavy mechanical complex Taxila and initiated our nuclear program. In 1973 , he gave us our constitution.
In the years to come, we grew in various fields like education, sports, agriculture, banking and industry. The number of schools , colleges and universities increased manifold after the independence.
There was an era in the history of Pakistan, when we continually won all important titles in hockey. We claimed victory number of times in World Cup, Champions Trophy, Asia Cup and Olympics. Jehangir Khan and Jansher Khan won laurels for us in the game of Squash. In the year 1992 , Pakistan won Cricket World Cup under the captaincy of Imran Khan . We produced one of the greatest sportsmen in the world.
Compared to the pre-independence era, a much larger area came under cultivation.
Pakistan boasts world’s largest irrigation network. The development of this irrigation system is one of the major achievement of Pakistani engineers.
Pakistan is famous for the quality of its sports equipment, especially, the one that is made in Sialkot. The most notable product of Pakistani sports industry is the hand stitched football which is produced and exported in millions and is used in football word cup every time. Pakistan Supplies 50% of World’s Footballs.
Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital was opened in the year 1994 which is a research-oriented cancer specialized hospital located in Lahore in Pakistan founded by Imran Khan. It is Pakistan's largest cancer hospital and has the largest radiation oncology centre . In this hospital , 75 percent of its patients are being treated free of cost.
The design of the nuclear bomb is a complex challenge requiring expertise in multiple theoretical and experimental sciences. On top of that, this technology and related equipments are highly classified. That is why, only 7 nations in the world declare to have this technology. Pakistan on 28th May 1998 became the first and the only muslim country to possess this technology by successfully exploding six nuclear devices. Pakistan also has the sixth largest and the best trained army in the world. Our airforce is reckoned as one of the finest in the world.
During Musharraf''s era , the economy of Pakistan expanded at an average rate of 7% per annum .Its growth touched a record level of 9% in 2004-05.
Growth of large scale manufacturing was highest in 2004-05 i.e. 19.9%.
Exchange rate remained stable despite widening of trade and current account deficits, clearly indicating strong inflows of external resources.
Foreign Exchange reserves crossed US$ 16 billion mark .Per capita income had increased to $925 (2006-07). We collaborated with the French to produce Augustus submarines and with China to produce JF 17 Thunder fighter aircraft , Al Khalid and Al Zarrar tanks. Pakistan is one of the eight countries of the world capable of making submarines.
In the year 2008, Namal university founded by Imran Khan was inaugurated.There are more than 300 students studying for University of Bradford degrees at Namal University and more than 90% of these students are on financial support.
As a result of 2013 elections, PTI govt came into power in KPK and is doing some fabulous work to ameliorate the situation in the province which had been worst affected by terrorism in the past one and a half decade . PTI has depoliticised police and made it an independent body. They are making patwari system transparent and have computerised the land records. The Peshawar High Court has introduced E-Citizens Grievance Redressal System. The health system has improved significantly – patients testify that doctors are present in the hospitals to attend to their ailments. KPK govt also went through serious challenges regarding Polio and its resistance, they handled the issue and launched a Sehat Ka Insaf program during which each child will also receive vaccination against 9 preventable diseases. KPK gov is committed to improving the environment, it has launched a massive 1 billion tree plantation drive across the province and is working on preserving our natural resources.
A very robust & independent Accountability Bureau has been established to catch corruption. KPK Govt has initiated launch to 356 Micro-hydel projects all over KPK. While Kalam has also received 400KW of Hydel power. Shaukat Khanum Peshawar is on development stage and it will be operational next year In sha ALLAH to help people of KP and FATA get rid of this disease. SKMT is doing a feasibility study for a third hospital, located in Karachi and have even acquired land for this purpose.
The Edhi Foundation is yet another non-profit social welfare program in Pakistan, founded by Abdul Sattar Edhi in 1951 which we be equally proud of.
The Edhi Foundation provides 24-hour emergency assistance across the nation of Pakistan and abroad. The Foundation provides, among many other services, shelter for the destitute, free hospitals and medical care, drug rehabilitation services, and national and international relief efforts. Its main focuses are Emergency Services, Orphans, Handicapped Persons, Shelters, Education, Healthcare, International Community Centers, Blood & Drug Bank, air ambulance services, Marine And Coastal Services.
Many artists such as Shehzad Roy , Abrar ul Haq , Omar Sharif, Jawad Bashir, Salman Ahmed and Junaid Jamshed are engaged in philanthropy and are spending a part of their earnings on the charitable projects. Pakistani doctors, engineers , economists ,IT experts , scientists and other professionals are considered as one of the best in the world and keep making us proud with their accomplishments.
Though today, we are beset with umpteen problems but our above mentioned achievements which our people have made in the most adverse of circumstances give us hope that through unity, faith, discipline and undying devotion, there is nothing in the world that we cannot achieve. They inspire us to put forth the best of our efforts to pull our country out of all these crises it finds itself in. Our country is still in transition- it is a volatile transition wherein we all must play a role to change the social standards and norms of Pakistan. We need to put our acts together and strive to bring accountability, checks and balances , fairness and transparency into our system. Pakistanis are the most talented people on earth. Given the right kind of opportunities, level playing field and conducive atmosphere , they can do wonders and achieve much more than they have so far. Their potential has not been fully tapped or exploited . All we need to do is to hone their skills and abilities and harness our resources for the right purposes and the right way. And in order to attain these objectives, the first and foremost thing we require is an honest , dedicated and sincere leadership to lead us in the correct direction and continue motivating us to realise the goal of a better Pakistan. This leadership we have fortunately got in the persona of Imran Khan and he is fully capable of steering our ship in the correct direction. The sooner our nation votes him to power , the earlier we will find ourselves amongst the most progressive nations of the world.
Iqbal says:
Hai Wohi Tere Zamane Ka Imam-e-Barhaq
Jo Tujhe Hazir-o-Mojood Se Bezar Kare
Mout Ke Aaeene Mein Tujh Ko Dikha Kar Rukh-e-Dost
Zindagi Tere Liye Aur Bhi Dushwar Kare
by webmaster@insaf.pk (tkiadmin)
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