“We need to seize again the whole language in search of better desires”

Following Independence in 1947, the new nation released a new sense of mission, a new energy. Dams and roads had to be built, the network of schools and hospitals extended. Natural resources had to be harnessed and science and tech¬nology employed for the greatest good of the greatest num¬ber. Water resources till then were limited to barrages down¬river and irrigation canals. The Lower Swat Canal, construct¬ed in 1895, irrigated a mere 134,586 acres in Charsadda and Nowshera tehsils of Peshawar district and parts of Mardan district. Two modest hydro-electric stations located at Jabban and Dargai generated only 20 MW each. The Kabul River Canal commissioned in 1883 irrigated 48,700 acres of the Khyber Agency, Peshawar and Nowshera districts. Now these were proving inadequate. With the division of the rivers between the two newly independent countries, India and Pakistan, an urgent need was felt to maximize the har¬vesting of water. The construction of the world's largest earthen dam till then, the Tarbela Dam, with a huge reservoir and two spillways was undertaken to utilize the extensive catchment area of the Indus falling in the Frontier. It remains a major source of energy for the Province and the country, producing 2200 megawatts of electricity.

Major irrigation works after Independence consist of the three-phased, Chashma Right Bank Canal which commands a total area of about 660,000 acres of land on the Indus. Of these 350,000 acres lie in the D.1. Khan district. This helped to open the land to sugar-cane, maize, wheat, pulses, grams and rice. The work commenced in 1978 and was completed in 1992.

One wonder of the modern world is the Karakorum Highway (KKH). A remarkable feat of engineering, it took twelve years to complete. This all-weather and highest of roads, was built almost along the ancient Silk route skirting the Indus, Gilgit and Hunza rivers upto the Chinese border. The KKH begins in the Frontier, crosses to the Northern Areas and enters China at the Khunjrab Pass.

A tribute to the professional skill and dedication of Pakistani and Chinese engineers, this 805 km. long artery began in 1966. The KKH rises up to 4,433 m. at Khunjrab after pass¬ing through some of the most spectacular and difficult ter¬rain in the world: three great mountain ranges - the Himalayas, Karakorum and Pamir. At the peak of construction 15,000 Pakistanis and 30,000 Chinese were employed. Almost a thousand lives were lost by its completion in 1978. It remains an enduring symbol of the centuries old relations between the Chinese people and the inhabitants of the land called Pakistan.

During the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan in the 1980's the country bore a burden greater than its economic health permitted. The major part of this burden was borne by the Frontier Province when it played host to over three million refugees for many long years. A large number of Afghans have married into local families, acquired properties and started thriving businesses. Many still continue to live in the Province adding to the vibrancy of life in some ways that are not totally beneficial socially.
The Province has a wide range of natural resources, such as precious stones and gems, coal and iron, marble and gyp¬sum, which await exploitation. The marble mountains ofTrich Mir, Swat, Dir provide a stunning spectrum of shades and have prompted a growing industry in mining, cutting and finishing.
Perhaps the greatest potential, apart from human resource, remains in the exploitation of gems and precious stones. To walk the labyrinthine gems and jewellery bazaar in the old Namak Mandi / "Salt Market" area of Peshawar is to enter Allahdin's cave. Tedious, narrow lanes with small unpromis¬ing exteriors leading to constricting passages, yield to sights out of the Arabian Nights. Mounds of lapis lazuli sit next to heaps of quarried tourmaline, stacks of rough aquamarines shimmer next to piles of rocks with embedded rubies and a fortune in uncut emeralds is tucked away in a corner. Invariably a bearded, turbaned Pathan guards them like a presiding spirit. Let him sprinkle the mound with water and transform it to the deepest of blues. Hold the uncut emeralds to light and marvel at their great magic, turn the ruby-rocks and the reddest of reds glints in the natural facets, lift the aquamarine and notice its surprising potential. When cut and faceted, polished and incorporated in jewellery and decora¬tive ornaments, these precious and semi-precious stones speak of power, prestige and possession.

At the time of Independence, gem deposits in Pakistan, were barely known. In the subsequent five decades, extensive deposits of emerald, ruby, spinel, pink topaz, aquama¬rine, tourmaline, lapis lazuli, zircon and quartz have been located and mined. These exquisite gemstones and a large variety of fine mineral specimens are largely found in the great snow-clad reaches of the Karakorum and Hindukush mountain ranges. These products of earth's intricate process¬es, of the interplay of awesome natural forces over millions of years, have now firmly established the Frontier as a signif¬icant producer of gemstones and Pakistan as an important gem exporting country.

After a large consignment of cut and polished stones from Pakistan was officially exhibited in the gem and mineral show at Tucson, USA in 1981, the Frontier became known to the world-wide market. Now the Pakistan Gems and Minerals Show is held every year. Buyers from the world over congregate in Peshawar in the first week of October. There they see the renowned Swat emeralds in magnificent green colour and clarity comparable, according to experts, to the best emeralds in the world, and Hunza rubies, with the distinct pigeon blood-red, which rival the traditional Burmese rubies, and the superb natural pink topaz, unique to Pakistan.

Then there is the light-splitting range of tourmaline, peridot and zircon. Tourmaline's most valued variety, bright red and pinkish-red is also found in this region. Its other tints - blue, green and rare golden yellow - make up the range. The dou¬bly reflective garnet and spinel that is found in blue and red, yellow epidote and green pargastine demonstrate the spread of these exquisite stones. Aquamarine of Pakistan is available in pale blue and a fine inky blue from Chitral. Then there is smoky quartz and a host of other crystalline miner¬als.

By its peculiar geography and location, at the crossroads of traditional trade routes, the Frontier has the potential to grow phenomenally. The construction of the Indus Highway on the left bank of the Indus, the widening and refurbishment of the Great Trunk Road, the construction of the Karakorum Highway and more recently the extention of the Motorway, the Ghazi Barotha hydel power project for much-needed energy, all underline the potential of the Province to become a hub of economic activity, industrial progress and commer¬cial upsurge. The Indus Highway connects Peshawar through Kohat, Karak and Dera Ghazi Khan to Punjab and Sindh. It provides the shorter distance to and from Karachi, the country's industrial and commercial centre. The Karakorum Highway has already proved a vital connection for trade and tourism between Pakistan and China. The tourism industry is still in nascent stages. But the many natural spots, with proper infrastructure and facilities, could become major foreign exchange earners. With the fall of the Soviet Union and the rise of Central Asian Republics, a future of prosperity beckons.