MITHI, Wednesday, January 14, 2026 (WNP): Chairman Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Wednesday inaugurated the NED University–affiliated Thar Institute of Engineering, Science and Technology and the School of Modern Sciences in Tharparkar, describing the initiative as a milestone for education-led development in Sindh’s desert district and a vital step toward Pakistan’s broader progress.
Addressing the inauguration ceremony, Bilawal said the development of Tharparkar was inseparable from the advancement of Sindh and the country as a whole. He termed the new institutions a “gift from the Sindh government” to the people of Tharparkar, particularly its youth, and paid tribute to the district’s residents for their longstanding support of the Pakistan Peoples Party.
“The people of Tharparkar have always stood with the PPP, with Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto and with Quaid-e-Awam Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto,” he said, adding that the party’s sustained development efforts reflected its deep commitment to the region.
Bilawal cautioned against what he described as recurring campaigns aimed at maligning Tharparkar and Sindh to undermine provincial autonomy. He said such narratives sought to justify centralization of power and resources in Islamabad under the pretext that provinces had failed to deliver. Tharparkar, he argued, stood as a clear rebuttal to this claim, noting visible development gains since the 18th Constitutional Amendment.
Highlighting the Thar coal project, the PPP chairman said the resource belonged to the people of Tharparkar and compared its potential to Saudi Arabia’s oil reserves. He noted that earlier efforts to utilize the resource were thwarted, but the project had now driven both economic and social transformation—supporting electricity generation, industrial growth in other parts of the country, and improved healthcare and infrastructure within Tharparkar itself.
He said revenues from the project had enabled the establishment of dispensaries, Basic Health Units, hospitals and road networks, as well as the creation of the Thar Foundation, which channels a share of profits into social welfare initiatives, including public-private healthcare partnerships with the Indus Hospital network.
Bilawal said the establishment of an NED University campus in Tharparkar had been a long-standing demand of local residents, with work initiated in 2019. He added that Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah had assured that the campus would be upgraded to a full-fledged university before the end of the current government’s term.
Emphasizing the PPP’s focus on inclusive development, Bilawal said the party prioritized healthcare and education and noted that the number of universities in Sindh had doubled under PPP governments. He also expressed satisfaction over the strong participation of female students at the new institution, calling it a realization of Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto’s vision of equal educational opportunities for women.
The PPP chairman also welcomed students from Gilgit-Baltistan studying at the Tharparkar campus, calling it a symbol of national integration. He said Sindh’s progress demonstrated that development need not be routed through Islamabad alone, citing successful provincial initiatives in education, healthcare and power generation.
Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, Provincial Minister for Universities and Boards Muhammad Ismail Rahoo, members of the provincial cabinet, legislators, local government representatives, party officials and notable figures from the area were also present at the ceremony.
