Islamabad, March 22 -- Pakistan is on the verge of hitting a kind of jackpot in the form of discovering a huge reserve of oil and gas in the Arabian Sea, Prime Minister Imran Khan has said, hoping that the discovery will solve the economic problems of the cash-strapped country.

The offshore drilling for oil was in final stages and there could be a major find, he said.

"I implore that we all pray that Pakistan gets this natural resource in substantial quantity. Our hopes and expectations from the offshore drilling being carried out by the ExxonMobil-led consortium prove to be true," he said on Thursday.

"There's already been a delay of about three weeks, but if the indications we are getting from the companies are anything to go by, the...