Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has expressed federal government's firm determination to equal development of all the provinces.

Addressing the participants of Balochistan National Workshop in Islamabad today, he mentioned that additional funds have been provided for the development of the province. He said development requirements of Balochistan were also recognized in the NFC Award of 2010, and all the provinces particularly Punjab contributed to it.

He said Punjab has so far contributed one hundred and fifty billion rupees in this regard. He assured to take all possible measures for the development of the province.

The Prime Minister highlighted the solarization of twenty-seven thousand agricultural tube-wells in Balochistan. He said fifty billion rupees were provided by the federal government for this project of seventy-five billion rupees. 

He said the Karachi-Chaman expressway will be completed in the next one and a half year to two years at a cost of three hundred billion rupees.

Shehbaz Sharif said the federal government will work in complete coordination with the provincial government to further create education opportunities for the youth in Balochistan. He said nine Daanish Schools are also being established in the province.

The Prime Minister said three hundred and sixty-eight billion rupees have been allocated in the budget for water storage projects. He assured that work on the Kachhi Canal project would be expedited and emphasized that it should be renamed as Pakistan Canal.

Alluding to the sacrifices rendered by the civilians and security personnel in the war on terrorism, the Prime Minister expressed the commitment to rid the country of terrorism through collective efforts.

He regretted that India is sponsoring terrorism in Pakistan. He said Pakistan has also urged the Afghan interim government to rein in terrorist groups and not to allow them to perpetrate terrorism in Pakistan. He, however, said the Afghan side has so far failed in this regard. 

Shehbaz Sharif said Pakistan's international standing has improved significantly due to the pivotal role it played in promoting regional peace and stability, as well as the decisive defeat it inflicted on India in May last year. He said the time has come to take the country forward on the path of economic development.