Marshal Law is Best for Pakistan

(Syed Musarrat Ali, Karachi)

Martial is only an adjective, and it is narrowly defined. It describes things that are (1) of or related to war, (2) related to the armed forces, and (3) characteristic of or befitting a warrior.

Marshal (with one l) is broader. It can serve as a noun referring to (1) a person holding one of various official positions, (2) a military officer, (3) an officer of the law or fire department in the U.S., or (4) a person in charge of a parade or ceremony; or as a verb meaning (1) to arrange or place (usually military personnel) in line for a parade or maneuver, (2) to arrange in methodical order, or (3) to enlist, gather, or organize.

The words are easily confused. In addition to being homophones, they both also come up in the military sphere. The key to keeping them separate is to remember that martial is only an adjective, while marshal is never an adjective.

In 1958, the first Pakistani President Major General Iskandar Mirza dismissed the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan and the government of Prime Minister Feroz Khan Noon, appointing army commander-in-chief Gen. Ayub Khan as the Chief martial law administrator.

Dams in his tenure:
The Mangla Dam is a multipurpose dam located on the Jhelum River in the Mirpur District of Azad Kashmir, Pakistan. It is the 9th largest damin the world. The project was designed and supervised by Binnie & Partners of London (the team led by partner Geoffrey Binnie), and it was built by Mangla Dam Contractors, a consortium of 8 U.S. construction firms, sponsored by Guy F. Atkinson Company of South San Francisco.The dam was constructed between 1961 to 1967 across the Jhelum River, about 67 miles (108 km) south-east of the Pakistani capital, Islamabad in Mirpur District of Azad Kashmir, Pakistan.

After helping to conduct military infiltration against Bangladesh in the 1965 war, Yahya was appointed commander-in-chief of army in 1966– a position he held until the final days of 1971 war. Amid political upheaval forced President Ayub Khan to resign in 1969, Yahya installed a military government after enforcing the martial law for the second time in Pakistan's history.

Operation Fair Play was the code-name for the coup d'etat conducted at midnight on July 4, 1977 by the Pakistani military led by army chief Gen.Zia-ul-Haq against the government of then-Pakistani Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.

Dams in his tenure:
Tarbela Dam on the Indus River in Pakistan is the largest earth filled dam in the world and second largest by structural volume.
Construction began 1968
Opening date 1976

In October, 1999 senior officers loyal to army chief Gen. Pervez Musharrafarrested prime minister Nawaz Sharif and his ministers after thwarting the Sharif regime's attempt to dismiss Musharraf and prevent his plane from landing in Pakistan as he returned from a visit to Sri Lanka.

Mega Projects:
Work on 102 mega projects was initiated in various sectors from 2000.
Such projects included Makran Coastal Highway, Lowari Tunnel, Pindi Bhattian – Faisalabad Motorway (M-3), Karachi Northern Bypass, Mirani Dam, Raising of Mangla Dam, Gomal Zam Dam, Sabakzai Dam, Satpara Dam, Kachhi Canal, Rainee Canal, Greater Thal Canal, Gwadar Port, Lining of Watercourses, Mansehra-Naran-Jalkhad Road, Diamer-Bhasha Dam, Neelum-Jhelum Hydro Electric Project and Islamabad-Muzaffarabad Road.

Six projects costing between Rs 1-5 billion have since been completed.

Work on six projects including raising of Mangla Dam and Lyari Expressway and first unit of 4 MW of Satpara Dam, was nearing completion.

Work on the remaining 89 projects was in progress and was scheduled to be completed during April, 2008 to December, 2016.
As many as 34,251 development schemes were launched during the period from 1999-07.

If Martial Law is not acceptable then Marshal Law is Best for a country like Pakistan.

Syed Musarrat Ali
About the Author: Syed Musarrat Ali Read More Articles by Syed Musarrat Ali: 185 Articles with 151195 views Basically Aeronautical Engineer and retired after 41 years as Senior Instructor Management Training PIA. Presently Consulting Editor Pakistan Times Ma.. View More