The irony is so cruel that it borders on tragedy. Karak is rich in natural gas, yet its people live as if they have none. Karak, a district blessed with abundant natural gas reserves, remains in darkness, its people deprived of the very resource extracted from beneath their feet. The gas fields of Nashpa, Makori, and Gurguri fuel industries and homes across the country, yet the residents of Karak resort to hazardous means, filling plastic bags with gas, to cook meals and warm their homes. The absurdity of it is infuriating.
For years, Karak’s residents have demanded their right to this resource, but their voices are met with silence. Protests, court petitions, and political promises have come and gone but nothing has changed the sad reality of this motherless area. The gas from Karak fuels Pakistan, but Karak itself remains neglected.
The Constitution of Pakistan guarantees rights, not empty words. Article 158 states that the province where a gas wellhead is located has priority over its use. And yet, Karak, home to some of the country’s most productive gas fields, is at the very bottom of the list. If constitutional provisions are merely words to be ignored at convenience, then what protection do residents of Karak have?
Every winter, Karak’s people prepare themselves for another season of suffering. Gas extracted from their soil will warm homes in far-off cities, while they shiver in the cold
Article 9 guarantees the right to life and security, but what security do families have when forced to breathe hazardous fumes? What protection is there when children grow up in homes full of health risks because the government refuses to supply them with proper gas connections?
Then there’s Article 25, which promises equality before the law. Yet, the reality is starkly different. Other cities in Pakistan have uninterrupted gas supply, while Karak, the source of this energy itself, is left to struggle. It's an insult to the very concept of justice.
The people of Karak have not been quiet. They have protested on highways, held sit-ins, and filed petitions in courts of justice. Each time, officials make big promises. And each time, as soon as the cameras stop rolling, those promises vanish. Meanwhile, authorities crack down on locals accused of ‘illegal use of gas’ as if survival is a crime, a bitter irony in a tale of neglect.
Karak's plight cannot be disregarded any more. The government needs to act now, not tomorrow.
- Enforce Article 158, provide gas-producing regions with their due first.
- Build Proper Infrastructure, and set up pipelines and legal connections without unnecessary red tape.
- Ensure Transparency, the mismanagement and corruption in gas distribution must be addressed and it needs to go.
- End Selective Crackdowns, penalising locals for utilising their resources while denying them legal access is hypocrisy in its purest form.
- Engage the residents in making decisions, not just officials in faraway offices.
Every winter, Karak’s people prepare themselves for another season of suffering. Gas extracted from their soil will warm homes in far-off cities, while they shiver in the cold. This is not a case of neglect, it is a betrayal. The injustice is as blatant as it is unforgivable.
If Pakistan truly believes in justice, it must behave like it. Karak’s people are not asking for favors, they are demanding what is rightfully theirs. And if those in power keep ignoring them, history will not be kind in its judgment.