Battagram cable car rescuers ‘heroes of the nation’.PM

Peaceful transfer of power is Kakar’s top priority,

Caretaker Prime Minister Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar while calling the Battagram cable car rescuers “heroes of the nation”, said that Pakistan’s Army, administration and local champions defied danger to write a new chapter of valour,

In a post uploaded on X, formerly Twitter, on Wednesday morning, PM Kakar said “The heart of Battagram, our heroes rose to the challenge. Our military, administration and local champions, hand in hand, defied danger to write a new chapter of valor. They rescued 8 young souls, proving once more the strength of our unity. Our nation’s spirit shines brightest today. Proud of our heroes!”

In an earlier post, PM Kakar said called the rescuers “heroes of the nation”. “Great team work by the military, rescue departments, district administration as well as the local people,” he added.

Military helicopters and ziplining commandos rescued eight people, including six schoolboys, who were trapped for hours on Tuesday in a stricken cable car high above a remote valley in Battagram district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The daring rescue began with a helicopter plucking a child to safety after almost 12 hours, but it was forced back to base as bad weather closed in and night fell.

Then, commandos from Pakistan’s Special Service Group (SSG) — known as the Maroon Berets — used the cable keeping the gondola from plunging into the valley as a zipline to rescue the rest of those stranded.

“I thought it was my last day and I will be no more,” one of the rescued boys, Attaullah Shah, told AFP. “God has granted me a second life,” the 15-year-old said.

Local officials earlier said two children had been plucked by helicopter from the stricken gondola, but the military later confirmed only one had been rescued that way.

“After tireless efforts by highly skilled pilots and SSG personnel, a child was rescued but the mission had to be cancelled due to bad weather,” the military’s media wing said in a statement.

“Further efforts were then made by the SSG troops and a special zipliner team for this purpose was flown to the crash site by Army helicopters.”

While.

Prime Minister Anwar-ul-Haq Kakar has said that the peaceful transfer of power is his first priority.

Addressing noted business personalities here on Wednesday, he said that the country was facing unemployment, inflation and food shortage. “Cooperation of the business community is needed to deal with the economic challenges,” the caretaker PM added.

Kakar urged the business community to play a role in the promotion of technical training in the country. “We will listen to the problems being faced by the business community and try our best to solve them. And the business people should listen to the government [and cooperate with it,” he continued.

Himself a Baloch, Kakar said that Balochistan is rich in precious minerals and natural resources. “We have mineral reserves worth more than six trillion dollars.”

He said “250 million people are disappointed. The foreign exchange earned through human resources is key to the development of the country.”

The caretaker premier admitted that the people were disappointed and leaving the country. “Why are we taking negative view of everything,” he asked candidly.

He said the business people are respectable as our prophet was also a businessman.

“The blessings that a person gets are not for an individual, they are for sharing. It is the way of Prophet Ibrahim to share blessings,” he continued.

The caretaker prime minister said that he would be available to around the clock to solve the problems of the business community. “Mere sloganeering cannot bring prosperity. Serious thinking is needed to achieve goals and get answers to serious questions.”

Kakar said short- and long-term projects would be implemented.

“Our mandate is very limited. We will carry out our duties till the new parliament is elected. The caretaker government is taking steps to fulfil international agreements and transparent elections,” the caretaker premier concluded.