ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has directed the interior ministry of to beef up security for the Chinese labour working in the country.

Presiding over a meeting at the PM House to review progress on development projects under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor on Monday, he said: “No laxity shall be shown in providing security to the Chinese labour.”

In a press release issued by the PM House, the prime minister was quoted as saying that China was a friend and a strategic partner.

The CPEC, he said, would prove to be a game-changer for the region. He directed completion of all its projects within stipulated time.

A participant of the meeting told Dawn that during his recent visits to Northern Areas, Mr Sharif observed that security for Chinese workers was required to be strengthened.

Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal gave a briefing to the prime minister on the CPEC projects.

Mr Sharif was informed that the training of personnel of a special army division, which had been exclusively created for security of CPEC projects, was under way.

In a separate meeting, Railways Minister Khawaja Saad Rafique briefed the prime minister on railway projects included in the CPEC.

Published in Dawn, November 3rd, 2015

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