Pakistani State Has Made Balochs Feel Like Aliens: Tilak Devasher

NEW DELHI: It’s the largest province of Pakistan, making up 45 per cent of its geographic area, yet Balochistan remains the most neglected area there. The region is mineral-rich, known especially for its gas reserves and the government has mined it to the hilt. Pakistan has saved $3 bn a year for decades by exploiting Baloch gas, says noted Pakistan watcher Tilak Devasher. Speaking to StratNews Global Editor-in-Chief Nitin A. Gokhale about his book ‘Pakistan: The Balochistan Conundrum’, Devasher, a member of National Security Advisory Board (NSAB), said Balochistan remains the most neglected province in Pakistan when it comes to various social indicators. It houses just 6 per cent of the Pakistani population but 80 per cent of the children there are severely malnourished. Riven by insurgency, the region has little representation in political decision-making. Nobody’s fighting Balochistan’s case in Islamabad, as Devasher says.