JANUARY 28 - FEBRUARY 3

According to reports, the management of Gwadar Port has been handed to China from Singapore. This decision has been taken by during a cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf. Also, on the sidelines of this transfer, the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline was given an approval too. 1

In another development, according to reports, a report prepared by the parliamentary commission on new provinces in Punjab was presented in the National Assembly on February 1. The report also contained the draft Twenty-fourth Constitutional Amendment Bill 2013. It suggested that there be only one new province, of which the capital would be Bahawalpur. It added that the new province should be named Bahawalpur Janoobi Punjab.

In other developments, according to reports, the commission recommended that the new province should receive almost 30 per cent of Punjab’s National Finance Commission (NFC) award. It also stated that Bahawalpur Janoobi Punjab would consists of the Multan, Bahawalpur and Dera Ghazi Khan divisions as well as Mianwali and Bhakkar districts. 2

• 1. Too little too late? Gwadar port transfer to China wins cabinet nod, The Express Tribune, January 31, 2013 at http://tribune.com.pk/story/500895/too-little-too-late-gwadar-port-trans...
• 2. Commission recommends new Bahawalpur Janoobi Punjab Province, Dawn, February 1, 2013 at http://dawn.com/2013/02/01/report-on-new-provinces-tabled-in-na/