The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) on Wednesday approved four projects, including the construction of the much-delayed Sukkur-Hyderabad motorway to complete a hassle-free road network between Karachi and Peshawar, with an estimated cost of Rs265 billion ($1.4 billion), the state-run APP news agency reported.
PM’s adviser on finance Shaukat Tarin presided over the ECNEC meeting that was attended by Planning Minister Asad Umar, Industries Minister Khusro Bakhtiar, Energy Minister Hammad Azhar, PM’s aide on commerce Abdul Razak Dawood, Punjab Irrigation Minister Mohsin Leghari, and federal and provincial government officials.
“The council revised project for construction of Hyderabad–Sukkur Motorway on Built Operate Transfer (BOT) basis with cost of Rs191,471.074 million ($1.07 billion),” the report read.
“The project would be executed by National Highway Authority (NHA) and envisages construction of 306-km-long, 6-lane wide, divided fenced between Hyderabad and Sukkur.”
ECNEC approved the project for land acquisition for the Rawalpindi Lai Expressway and Flood Channel, worth Rs24,960.70 million ($140 million). It directed that no expenditure would be incurred till the completion of an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report and approval of the project from the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Board. The project would be executed by the Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA).
It envisages acquisition of 750 kanals of land to provide a clear right of way for the construction of the Lai Nullah Expressway and Flood Channel, which would constitute an integral part of the Rawalpindi transportation network besides flood mitigation and sewage disposal.
A project for the construction of Rawalpindi Ring Road (R3) main carriageway from Baanth to Thallian amounting Rs23,606.214 million ($132 million) was approved too. The six-lane, access-controlled 38.3km road would be financed by the Punjab Annual Development Programme (ADP) and executed by the RDA, according to the report.
The forum also approved the revised Southern Punjab Poverty Alleviation Project (SPPAP), worth Rs25,243.131 million ($141 million). Contributions from International Fund for Agriculture Development (IFAD), the Punjab government and beneficiaries would assist funding of the project that is spread over ten districts in Punjab.
The council deferred the Greater Thal Canal Project Phase-II with observations to be discussed in the next meeting after considering technical aspects of the project, inclusion of comments from Sindh officials in the report of Central Development Working Party (CDWP) and addressing reservations of all stakeholders.