About 5,000 families (around 150,000 people) living in the mountainous Shorparod area of Balochistan’s Kalat district have been given a deadline to vacate the area.
The Balochistan government has instructed the affected population to leave the area voluntarily and move to designated camps by 30 October.
At a press conference in Quetta, the Home Department’s Additional Chief Secretary, Muhammad Hamza Shafqaat, together with Balochistan Interior Minister Ziaullah Langove and the Chief Minister’s aide Shahid Rind, announced that Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti has formally approved this forced relocation plan.
The government has made clear that forced eviction proceedings will be carried out against those who do not leave the area by the deadline.
Officials say the Shorparod mountain range is state-owned land, though they also claim the claims of residents will be reviewed.
According to officials, the aim of this step is to end security concerns and anti-state activities.
Meanwhile, the government has claimed that arrangements are being made to provide displaced families with tents, food, medicines and other essentials, and the commissioner of Khuzdar has been put in charge of overseeing the whole process.
