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WEEKLY
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| ‘Iran ready to provide 1,100MW to Pakistan’ |
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Thursday, October 29, 2009
By Shahid Husain
Karachi
Iranian Consul General Masood Mohammad Zamani has said that his country was ready to provide 1100 Megawatt (MW) electricity to contain the power crisis in Pakistan in general and Karachi in particular.
“Iran is already providing 25MW to Gwadar and is ready to provide 1100MW to Pakistan,” he told a charged City District Council on Wednesday where he was invited as a guest of honour.
Speaking in fluent Urdu, he said that the collaboration between Iran and Pakistan could be beneficial for both the countries but the enemies of Iran were creating obstacles in its way.
“Karachi is my second city and Pakistan is my second country,” he said, adding, “Pakistan and Iran are bound in many ways by religion, language, culture and traditions.”
He said that Iran was the first country to recognise Pakistan after it achieved independence in 1947 and Pakistan was the first country to recognise the revolutionary government of Iran after a movement led by Ayatullah Imam Khomeni overthrew the Shah of Iran in 1979.
He said that Pakistan and Iran have common borders and pottery found in Merargarh in Balochistan and in Iran have similar features. He said it was a misconception that Mohammad bin Qasim came to Sindh from Arabia since he was an Iranian governor. He said that Iranians introduced Sufism in Sindh and Saint Abdullah Shah Ghazi whose mausoleum is in Karachi was originally from Iran.
He said that Karachi was not only an industrial city but hosts various cultural entities and City Council should organise cultural exchange programmes with Iran and vice versa to highlight the cultural significance of the metropolis.
He said that like Karachi, Tehran was also a big city that is developing fast under the leadership of President Ahmedinejad and Karachi could benefit from the developmental experiences of Tehran.
Earlier in her welcome address, City Naib Nazim Nasreen Jalil said that Karachi happens to be the financial hub of Pakistan. “Karachi is not only the seventh largest city of the world but it is also the largest Muslim city of the world,” she remarked.
She said that Karachi became stable due to the endeavours of Muthahhida Qaumi Movement (MQM) leader Altaf Hussain and President Asif Ali Zardari.
She said that being a neighbouring country, Iran has deep historical and cultural ties with Pakistan.
“Our previous generations spoke Persian. I myself was taught basic Persian when I was in school,” she mentioned.
She said that Iranian engineers have shed blood for the development of Karachi. “Who else can understand terrorism in a better way than you,” she said looking at the top Iranian diplomat.
She said that it was high time for both the countries to wage a joint struggle against terrorism. “We are grateful for Iranian cooperation in the energy sector and look forward for the Iran-Pakistan-India pipeline,” she said.
She said that a City Council delegation would soon visit Iran to learn from its experiences.
Leader of the House Asif Siddiqui said that he had been listening about Pakistan-Iran cultural ties since his childhood and the Iranian consul general has explained it with historical facts. He said that the relationship between the two neighbouring countries would be strengthened if they countered terrorism jointly.
Opposition member Jumman Darwan said that Pakistan and Iran were not only tied by religion but had blood relations as well. Elaborating, he said, Begum Nusrat Bhutto, the wife of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) founding chairman and former Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was an Iranian by origin.
He said that Z.A. Bhutto strengthened trade ties between the two countries and he was delighted to learn that Iran was eager to fulfil the energy needs of Pakistan.
Shamim Wasi of opposition benches pointed out that Iran helped in the construction of Fatima Jinnah Bridge and Pakistan Steel Mills and added if the common coastline between Pakistan and Iran could be developed it would lead to a revolution.
Rafiq Ahmed of opposition benches said that Pakistanis were aggrieved if there was any terror attack in Iran. “People involved in the recent terror attack in Iran can’t be Muslims,” he said.
Earlier, Fateha was offered for the victims of terror attacks in Iran and in Peshawar.
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ISSN 1563-9479 
