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The
Ittefaq Group of Industries, (
EnglishEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
The Unity), is an integrated
steelSteel is an alloy that consists mostly of iron and has a carbon content between 0.2% and 2.1% by weight, depending on the grade. Carbon is the most common alloying material for iron, but various other alloying elements are used, such as manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten...
producer with major operations in Punjab Province of
PakistanPakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
. This steel mill was founded and established by renowned industrialist
Muhammad SharifMian Muhammad Sharif Butt was a Pakistani industrialist and father of former Prime Minister of Pakistan, Nawaz Sharif and the chief minister of the Punjab province, Shahbaz Sharif.-Early life:...
, father of two times
Prime ministerThe Prime Minister of Pakistan , is the Head of Government of Pakistan who is designated to exercise as the country's Chief Executive. By the Constitution of Pakistan, Pakistan has the parliamentary democratic system of government...
Nawaz SharifMian Mohammad Nawaz Sharif is a Pakistani conservative politician and steel magnate who served as 12th Prime Minister of Pakistan in two non-consecutive terms from November 1990 to July 1993, and from February 1997 to October 12, 1999...
.
Muhammad Sharif father, with his six brothers, established a
foundryA foundry is a factory that produces metal castings. Metals are cast into shapes by melting them into a liquid, pouring the metal in a mold, and removing the mold material or casting after the metal has solidified as it cools. The most common metals processed are aluminum and cast iron...
in 1939. In 1972, Prime Minister
Zulfikar Ali BhuttoZulfikar Ali Bhutto was 9th Prime Minister of Pakistan from 1973 to 1977, and prior to that, 4th President of Pakistan from 1971 to 1973. Bhutto was the founder of the Pakistan Peoples Party — the largest and most influential political party in Pakistan— and served as its chairman until his...
nationalized the steel industry, including the Sharif family business —
Ittefaq Group. In 1980, General Mohammad Zia ul-Haq returned the business after developing political links with the Sharifs.
During the 1980s and 1990s, Ittefaq Group expanded from a single foundry to 30 businesses which produced steel, sugar, paper, and textiles. Its annual revenues were estimated at $400 million. In 1993, Ittefaq group went bankrupt after several loan defaults.