X-2.
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Gilgit-Baltistan is the sole route connecting Pakistan with China and the Central Asian states as the 1300 km Karakoram Highway runs through this sleepy, mountainous region. Recently, its geopolitical location has become intrinsic to the viability of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor as it is the entry point of the economic route, the mapping of the route is reminiscent of the ancient Silk Road which joined a myriad cultures and nations.
Gilgit Baltistan can greatly contribute to regional integration and connectivity as it borders Pakistan, China, India and Afghanistan-Tajikistan, it makes it a natural gateway for trade. This Geo-strategic region acts as a buffer between Pakistan, Afghanistan and India, it is the entry point of the vital Indus River and the Siachen glacier is also located here. GB is also the meeting point of four of the world’s high altitude mountain ranges Baltistan i.e. Pamirs, Hindukush, Karakorum and Himalayas.
This natural gateway will gain a lot from Chinese trade as well as tourism as it is home to some of the world’s highest mountain peaks, the addition of economic zones will enhance business opportunities. CPEC related projects will provide the local educated youth with employment and ultimately, a higher standard of living, the literacy rate in these regions is 95% which is extremely commendable.
Right now, Gilgit Baltistan’s communication set up is undergoing expansion, a massive fiber optic CPEC project is underway from Khunjerab to Rawalpindi at the cost of Rs. 4.4 billion, it would be completed in two years and provide an alternative telecommunication route between Pakistan and China. The Diamer-Bhasha dam is also being constructed in Gilgit-Baltistan, it would generate 4,500 MW of electricity and the energy shortfall would be covered. The China Pakistan Economic corridor would provide the option of exporting GB products by road, in fact, the region can become Pakistan’s ‘northern Gwadar.’
The CPEC is a veritable bete noire for neighbouring country India, it wants to sabotage the project at any cost and claims that Gilgit -Baltistan is a disputed region with the intent to make the project impossible to continue. For this purpose, India unleashed a lot of fake news campaigns and rumours regarding Gilgit Baltistan, a lot of propaganda is done by Indian television and print media. There is no insurgency or rebellion in GB, in fact many Gilgitis join the Pakistan army.
Since 1947, India never paid much attention to Gilgit Baltistan or even claimed it along with Kashmir, so much so that the world did not even know that the ‘Kashmir dispute’ included this region, it was thought to be just the Kashmir valley which was claimed by both countries. Indian claim on GB is a relatively recent development because it feels threatened by increasing Chinese influence and the CPEC.
India woke up to the existence of Gilgit Baltistan in 2009 and 2010, specially after it received reports that Chinese soldiers and workers had a presence in GB, this is how it responded, “India believes that Pakistan has been in illegal occupation of parts of the Indian State of Jammu and Kashmir since 1947. The Chinese side is fully aware of India’s position and our concerns about Chinese activities in Azad Kashmir”,the MEA said in 2009. In 2015, National Security Adviser Ajit Doval surprised most Indians when he reminded an audience of BSF officers that “we also have a 106-km-long non-contiguous border with Afghanistan that we need to factor in,” this was a reference to Gilgit Baltistan’s Afghan frontier.
Vikas Swarup, spokesman for the External Affairs Ministry, also remarked in similar vein “India’s position is well known. The entire state of Jammu and Kashmir, which includes the regions of Gilgit and Baltistan, is an integral part of India.The election, which is scheduled for June 8, is as an attempt by Islamabad “to camouflage its forcible and illegal occupation of the regions.”
So finally India wanted to claim Gilgit Baltistan, notwithstanding the fact that when the Dixon proposals came up in 1950, India had accepted the proposal for allotment to Pakistan of those areas where there was no apparent doubt about the wishes of the people wanting to go with Pakistan, and Gilgit-Baltistan was one of these areas. Gilgit Baltistan’s geographical proximity with India has made it a sensitive zone and forward area.
Around this point in time, the Kashmir issue reached the boiling point and India took the matter to the United Nations, a plebiscite was ordained in a UN resolution. Gilgit Baltistan found itself back to the pavilion with Kashmir even after having joined the Pakistan federation, the plebiscite was delayed by India for decades as it did not feel brave enough to face a referendum in Kashmir.
Meanwhile, the Pakistan government has tried to assimilate GB into the mainstream by making state employment available for its educated youth since a couple of decades, local entrepreneurs have also been facilitated and provided access to big investors, both locally and abroad. Back in 1979, the Karakoram Highway (KKH) was built to link Gilgit Baltistan with the rest of the country, it was an extremely difficult, inaccessible and challenging task for the builders, a Pakistani road building company popularly known as FWO, but this collaboration of Pakistani and Chinese engineers was a huge success.
The KKH made terrains accessible starting from Batgram to Khunjerab Pass on the Pakistan China border and ushered in an economic, cultural and educational revolution amongst the locals. The China Pakistan Economic Corridor changes realities even more for Gilgit Baltistan, it has tremendous economic potential for the whole region, its hydro power resources as well as infrastructure and tourism can change the face of the region as well as Pakistan as a whole.
The CPEC mainly depends on the KKH, where Gilgit Baltistan is concerned, it is aimed at widening and straightening of the existing Karakoram Highway. The location and basic alignment of route cannot be changed drastically due to the narrow valleys and mountainous terrain, an economic zone could be planned at a suitable location across River Indus in Bunji, Astore where a wide stretch of land exists.
Every year, Gilgit-Baltistan observes two independence days, one is August 14th as part of Pakistan, the second is 1st November when it achieved freedom from the Kashmiri Dogra rulers. The demand of Gilgit Baltistan is to be recognized as Pakistan, not as India, this is something that the Indian government has to face sooner or later. The region should be made into a province at the earliest to put an end to the ill- founded controversy, for all intents and purposes it is a part of Pakistan so there is no plausible reason for it to remain in a constitutional limbo and made to wait for its due rights. A high level committee formed by PM Nawaz Sharif is said to be working on the proposal to mention Gilgit Baltistan formally in the Pakistan constitution and two of its representatives would sit in the National Assembly in the future, the committee is headed by the Prime Minister himself, the Chief Minister of Gilgit Baltistan and Chief Ministers of the 4 provinces.
Gilgit Baltistan can greatly contribute to regional integration and connectivity as it borders Pakistan, China, India and Afghanistan-Tajikistan, it makes it a natural gateway for trade. This Geo-strategic region acts as a buffer between Pakistan, Afghanistan and India, it is the entry point of the vital Indus River and the Siachen glacier is also located here. GB is also the meeting point of four of the world’s high altitude mountain ranges Baltistan i.e. Pamirs, Hindukush, Karakorum and Himalayas.
This natural gateway will gain a lot from Chinese trade as well as tourism as it is home to some of the world’s highest mountain peaks, the addition of economic zones will enhance business opportunities. CPEC related projects will provide the local educated youth with employment and ultimately, a higher standard of living, the literacy rate in these regions is 95% which is extremely commendable.
Right now, Gilgit Baltistan’s communication set up is undergoing expansion, a massive fiber optic CPEC project is underway from Khunjerab to Rawalpindi at the cost of Rs. 4.4 billion, it would be completed in two years and provide an alternative telecommunication route between Pakistan and China. The Diamer-Bhasha dam is also being constructed in Gilgit-Baltistan, it would generate 4,500 MW of electricity and the energy shortfall would be covered. The China Pakistan Economic corridor would provide the option of exporting GB products by road, in fact, the region can become Pakistan’s ‘northern Gwadar.’
The CPEC is a veritable bete noire for neighbouring country India, it wants to sabotage the project at any cost and claims that Gilgit -Baltistan is a disputed region with the intent to make the project impossible to continue. For this purpose, India unleashed a lot of fake news campaigns and rumours regarding Gilgit Baltistan, a lot of propaganda is done by Indian television and print media. There is no insurgency or rebellion in GB, in fact many Gilgitis join the Pakistan army.
Since 1947, India never paid much attention to Gilgit Baltistan or even claimed it along with Kashmir, so much so that the world did not even know that the ‘Kashmir dispute’ included this region, it was thought to be just the Kashmir valley which was claimed by both countries. Indian claim on GB is a relatively recent development because it feels threatened by increasing Chinese influence and the CPEC.
India woke up to the existence of Gilgit Baltistan in 2009 and 2010, specially after it received reports that Chinese soldiers and workers had a presence in GB, this is how it responded, “India believes that Pakistan has been in illegal occupation of parts of the Indian State of Jammu and Kashmir since 1947. The Chinese side is fully aware of India’s position and our concerns about Chinese activities in Azad Kashmir”,the MEA said in 2009. In 2015, National Security Adviser Ajit Doval surprised most Indians when he reminded an audience of BSF officers that “we also have a 106-km-long non-contiguous border with Afghanistan that we need to factor in,” this was a reference to Gilgit Baltistan’s Afghan frontier.
Vikas Swarup, spokesman for the External Affairs Ministry, also remarked in similar vein “India’s position is well known. The entire state of Jammu and Kashmir, which includes the regions of Gilgit and Baltistan, is an integral part of India.The election, which is scheduled for June 8, is as an attempt by Islamabad “to camouflage its forcible and illegal occupation of the regions.”
So finally India wanted to claim Gilgit Baltistan, notwithstanding the fact that when the Dixon proposals came up in 1950, India had accepted the proposal for allotment to Pakistan of those areas where there was no apparent doubt about the wishes of the people wanting to go with Pakistan, and Gilgit-Baltistan was one of these areas. Gilgit Baltistan’s geographical proximity with India has made it a sensitive zone and forward area.
Around this point in time, the Kashmir issue reached the boiling point and India took the matter to the United Nations, a plebiscite was ordained in a UN resolution. Gilgit Baltistan found itself back to the pavilion with Kashmir even after having joined the Pakistan federation, the plebiscite was delayed by India for decades as it did not feel brave enough to face a referendum in Kashmir.
Meanwhile, the Pakistan government has tried to assimilate GB into the mainstream by making state employment available for its educated youth since a couple of decades, local entrepreneurs have also been facilitated and provided access to big investors, both locally and abroad. Back in 1979, the Karakoram Highway (KKH) was built to link Gilgit Baltistan with the rest of the country, it was an extremely difficult, inaccessible and challenging task for the builders, a Pakistani road building company popularly known as FWO, but this collaboration of Pakistani and Chinese engineers was a huge success.
The KKH made terrains accessible starting from Batgram to Khunjerab Pass on the Pakistan China border and ushered in an economic, cultural and educational revolution amongst the locals. The China Pakistan Economic Corridor changes realities even more for Gilgit Baltistan, it has tremendous economic potential for the whole region, its hydro power resources as well as infrastructure and tourism can change the face of the region as well as Pakistan as a whole.
The CPEC mainly depends on the KKH, where Gilgit Baltistan is concerned, it is aimed at widening and straightening of the existing Karakoram Highway. The location and basic alignment of route cannot be changed drastically due to the narrow valleys and mountainous terrain, an economic zone could be planned at a suitable location across River Indus in Bunji, Astore where a wide stretch of land exists.
Every year, Gilgit-Baltistan observes two independence days, one is August 14th as part of Pakistan, the second is 1st November when it achieved freedom from the Kashmiri Dogra rulers. The demand of Gilgit Baltistan is to be recognized as Pakistan, not as India, this is something that the Indian government has to face sooner or later. The region should be made into a province at the earliest to put an end to the ill- founded controversy, for all intents and purposes it is a part of Pakistan so there is no plausible reason for it to remain in a constitutional limbo and made to wait for its due rights. A high level committee formed by PM Nawaz Sharif is said to be working on the proposal to mention Gilgit Baltistan formally in the Pakistan constitution and two of its representatives would sit in the National Assembly in the future, the committee is headed by the Prime Minister himself, the Chief Minister of Gilgit Baltistan and Chief Ministers of the 4 provinces.
