Development and Militarization in Balochistan, Pakistan

Abstract

This article examines the interplay of development, militarization and culture of impunity in Balochistan. It contends that the State’s pursuit of large-scale infrastructure projects is intensifying the conflict. Balochistan has increasingly been positioned as the potential fulcrum of Pakistan’s economic revival due to its vast, untapped resources and significant Chinese investments. While this vision seems promising, it has heightened Baloch anxieties and resistance. Large development initiatives bring about socio-economic disruptions, fuelling existing anti-State sentiment. The article argues that the imperative to protect expanding economic assets has enabled the region’s further militarization, engendering an environment wherein the security-intelligence apparatus employs force inordinately and arbitrarily with impunity.