Global Recognition of Pink Salt: When Will Pakistan Take the First Step?

The process of outsourcing all the airports in the country is almost complete, and an announcement could be made at any time. It will be declared that we first sank our own airline with our own hands and left those earning foreign exchange for the country in foreign lands helpless. Now, why would we need these airports anymore? Let’s mortgage them too; after all, it could bring us some personal profit.

We are being told that this is how things work in other countries. Well, other countries have many best practices, but you don’t follow those, do you? You’re selling off Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), practically giving away the Karachi Steel Mill spread over 19,000 acres and worth billions, for pennies. Deals are being made to sell the ports, the sale of National Bank is in the works, and you’re selling Civil Aviation. You’re even selling Pakistani assets in the US and UK. Rather than informing the nation, you’ve turned Parliament into a mere rubber stamp. Based on a false sense of superiority in Parliament, you’re determined to sell off the entire country. Recently, a tsunami of constitutional amendments was ready to drown us, but Maulana, despite being in the minority in Parliament, displayed his influence just as his late father did when he secured the Chief Ministership of the province, despite being from the third but minority party. Similarly, in Punjab, Pervez Elahi, with just ten seats, turned the Chief Ministership into his household’s servant.

For many years now, this mockery has been made of the nation, and no one is questioning what sort of joke is being played on us. For the past seven decades, I’ve been hearing that the country is in grave danger, but those responsible for putting it in danger face no accountability.

There is another issue I want to highlight, which is equally important:

You can research on the internet yourself to see that three major countries currently export seafood to the whole world, one of them being Vietnam, whose coastline is much smaller than Gwadar’s. Vietnam exports $10 billion worth of seafood, whereas our exports from Gwadar are so minimal they are shameful. With just a little effort, we could easily export $12 billion worth of seafood. Vietnam has provided employment to 4.5 million people through its coastline, while how many have we employed? They have no answer to that either.

God has blessed us with countless resources, yet a handful of powerful individuals are looting these resources during their turn in power, transferring their wealth to foreign banks. Despite the bounties given to us by the Almighty, due to the incompetence of governments and ongoing corruption in administration, we are suffocating under mountains of debt, while our people are being handed over to the monster of inflation, which is sucking the very life out of them. When our Prime Minister, in an interview with a foreign lady, begs for help from the world like a pauper, perhaps he feels no shame, but those of us living abroad, who still send remittances to the country, have started to feel embarrassed. Can you find any other example in the world where, after a person in Pakistan pays income tax on their salary, they are forced to pay yet another tax on their earnings at the end of the year? In other words, after paying income tax, a new, separate tax is imposed.

Now, listen to another injustice. Pakistan currently has 22.2 billion tons of natural mineral reserves. Let me just mention the Khewra salt mine. We are currently extracting 370,000 tons of salt from it annually. The details will be fascinating for you and all your readers. These reserves stretch from Jhelum to Mianwali, Kalabagh, and Kohat Bahadur Khel. The total length is 300 kilometers, the width is 30 kilometers, and the depth is 2,400 feet. This entire area is filled with pink salt. Let me also add that this pink salt is only found in Pakistan across the entire globe, a blessing bestowed upon us solely by God. It is such a great bounty that the world calls it “pink gold.” Before telling this story, I used the word ‘injustice,’ which was incorrect. In fact, we are committing countless injustices. Now, with full responsibility and evidence, let me briefly point out this injustice.

The First Injustice is that India, Pakistan’s eternal adversary, is selling this pink salt around the world under its own name. We have yet to register and protect this precious resource under the Geographical Indications (GI) law. According to this law, since this salt is only found in Pakistan, no other country can place their label on our valuable asset. What is it that prevents or incapacitates us from getting it registered? Could there be a hidden reason behind this, where certain individuals are quietly earning commissions from the process?

The Second Injustice is that the traditional and dangerous mining methods currently in use not only put the lives of miners at risk but also waste an enormous amount of salt. I would also like to draw the attention of the readers to a report published in Dawn on 14th May 2023, which mentioned that the Pakistani Ambassador in Washington, Mr. Masood, was approached by an American firm that expressed an interest in investing an initial sum of 200 million dollars in pink salt. This investment could potentially increase to 1 billion dollars. The firm also mentioned that using modern technology, we could increase the annual production of pink salt to 10 million tonnes by 2030.

Let me inform you that, according to global experts, this is the only unique salt in the world that contains a large amount of natural iodine, which is not only useful for consumption but can also be used in various medicines and preserved foods, making it highly beneficial for health. Moreover, this pink salt can be used in various products, and it has a natural fragrance that not only preserves various food items but also eliminates the typical unpleasant smell of such products. However, the sad reality is that we have not been able to rid ourselves of the stench of corruption here.

Today, with a heavy heart, I present Pakistan’s case to you all: our country’s priceless treasures are being looted. Through your platform, I would like to ask the Pakistani elite why Pakistan is not listed among the world’s top 20 salt-exporting countries. Secondly, why has Pakistan not yet taken any steps to stop India’s illegal activity in selling our pink salt under their label? This question is for all past governments: why have they not been held accountable for this criminal negligence?

Thirdly, why have we not yet addressed the dangers to the lives and health of the miners extracting this salt? Why has the government remained silent about the massive amount of salt being wasted due to current methods? What are we waiting for before we take steps to protect our valuable resources? Why are we delaying the use of modern technology, and who is responsible for this failure? Would these elite “big fish” show the same sluggishness in their own private businesses? Absolutely not! Because this is national wealth, owned by the people, and the public should know about the injustices being inflicted upon them for which they are paying a heavy price.

There was an incident involving a government minister dining at a restaurant in DHA. When he asked the waiter for the bill, the waiter pointed towards an individual sitting at a nearby table and informed the minister that the gentleman had already paid the bill. The minister shook hands with the young man and asked why he had paid the bill. The young man replied, “I recognized you as a minister.” The minister nodded in acknowledgment. Before the minister could say anything further, the young man boldly said, “Since we already pay for your electricity, gas, and phone bills, and the salaries of the police guards who accompany you for your protection come out of our pockets, why shouldn’t we pay for your meal as well?”