Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif performed the groundbreaking of the Pakistan-China Optical Fibre Cable project today. The Optic Fiber Cable is part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
The $44 million, 820-kilometre-long cable will be laid between Rawalpindi and Khunjerab by the Special Communication Organization over a period of two years, and on completion it will provide an alternate telecommunication link between Pakistan and China; the link will open the region to 3G and 4G connectivity, the PM said in his inaugural address.
The PM Nawaz Shariff also inaugurated the Gilgit-Baltistan CPEC Patrolling Police Headquarters in Gilgit, which will comprise of 300 personnel to help regulate traffic along a 439 km part of the CPEC passing through the area. 25 vehicles for the patrolling force have been provided by China.
The premier announced setting up a fund of Rs100 million for the establishment of a technical training institute in the region, stressing the need for the youth to be prepared for a newer knowledge-based economy; he emphasized that "These development projects will help reduce extremism," pointing that a lack of employment in the region as a driver of militancy, which this technical training institute will help overcome.