Nationalisation in Pakistan

The Nationalisation process in Pakistan^[1] (or historically simply regarded as the "Nationalisation in Pakistan") was a policy measure programme in the economic history of Pakistan that negatively impacted the country's industrialization and undermined the trust of businessmen and investors. The process was first introduced, promulgated and implemented by Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Pakistan Peoples Party to lay the foundation of socialist economics reforms to improve the growth of the national economy.^[2] Since the 1950s, the country had undergone a speedy industrialisation.^[3] But, as time progressed, the labour trade unions and labour-working class had increasingly strained relations with the industrial business oligarch class, having neglected to improve working conditions and failing to provide a healthy and safe environment for the workers in these industrial industries.^[4]

The nationalisation programme began on 2 January 1972, with a vision to promote economic democracy, liberalisation, and an initial mainstream goal to put Pakistan in line with state progressivism.^[3] Ended effectively in 1977, the nationalisation programme was again put forward by Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto in 1996,^[5] and most recently by then-current Prime minister Yousaf Raza Gillani in 2012 who activated the programme to bring three major megacorporations (Steel Mills, Railways and International Airlines) under government ownership in an attempt to improve its structure and to alleviate its profitable process.^[6]

Despite its success in its formative years, such policy measure programmes met with an extreme^{[clarification needed]} level of spontaneous demonstration and international and national opposition that left disastrous effects on Pakistan's national economy^[7] and government takeover of private companies made Pakistan economy worst and investor's trust lost in Pakistan until it was replaced with the privatisation programme by later governments.^[8]