ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan Wednesday said the province of Balochistan was gifted with natural resources but lack of good governance and mismanagement on the part of previous governments resulted in its backwardness. He was talking to a group of students of the Cadet College Qilla Saifullah here. The situation in Balochistan and other issues, including education, were discussed during the interaction. Minister for Defence Production Zubaida Jalal was also present, PM Office said in a press release. The prime minister referred to the Riasat-e-Madina and the Caliphate, saying the Muslims, despite limited resources, led the world by emulating the golden principles laid down by Holy Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him). He also cited Switzerland which had limited resources but due to good governance left many other European countries behind in the realm of progress and prosperity. Corruption was the reason for backwardness of the people of Balochistan, he said, and enumerated that for evolution of a society, rule of law, justice, compact system to support the down-trodden and promotion of education were of most significance. The prime minister underlined the importance and role of education as the main tool for the progress and prosperity of a nation. He stressed upon the students to fully concentrate their energies on getting education. With regard to social and economic situation in the province, the prime minister regretted that in the past, there were different sets of law for the powerful and the feeble. The province, he said, also witnessed large-scale corruption in the funds allocated for its development. The province mired into backwardness as the development funds were not transferred to the grassroots level, he added. The prime minister maintained that the present government was different from the previous regimes in its approach towards the issues. Under the new local government system, the development funds would be transferred to the village level so that their utilization could be ensured in accordance with the needs of the local populace. He termed the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) a brilliant project for progress and prosperity of Balochistan. He said the government was fully cognizant of the serious water situation in the province, and emphasized upon its judicious usage besides formulation of a comprehensive strategy and introduction of the latest technology to overcome the issue. Short-, medium- and long-term strategies were afoot in this connection, he added. Published in Daily Times, December 13th 2018.