Aadi and I had a very lively discussion on where Pakistan is headed and the imminence of its collapse. It was a live session with lot of questions. The Q&A session was outstanding.
As per reports the government is set to finalise the ‘Agnipath’ nee ‘Tour of Duty’ recruitment scheme, under which youth can enlist in the Army for three /five years and be known as ‘Agnivirs’. It is being envisaged that 25% of them would serve for three years and 25% for five years, the remaining 50% would serve for the full term till they reach the retirement age. This major reform is expected to significantly reduce the age profile of the Armed forces. This reform will also result in significant reduction of pensions. It will curb the ballooning salary and pension bills that are adversely impacting military modernization. Under this arrangement, after completing 3 or 5 years of service, the Army will help the soldier/officer to be recruited in other services. The soldiers would be given a pay-out along with priority in recruitment to certain government jobs, including the central armed police forces. An effort is also on to nudge corporate India into hiring such ...
Gwadar is going to be a hub of Central Asia trade. There isn't much shipping going on currently to Gwadar. However, the infrastructure is already there. There are three large berths for cargo ships. The CPEC built Eastbay Expressway was recently opened linking Gwadar to the national highway. Uzbekistan began construction of the Trans-Afghan Railway to Peshawar in March with an eye on using Gwadar and Karachi as landlocked Uzbekistan's outlets to the world.
ReplyDeletePerhaps the most interesting thing about Gwadar is the one project that isn't being built. There is no actively pursued plan to build a railway linking Pakistan with Xinjiang. The Long Term Plan (2017-30) says nothing about a railway between the countries. https://www.pc.gov.pk/uploads/cpec/LTP.pdf That shows China doesn't view CPEC as mainly strategic, it's mainly commercial.