Pakistan

PM inaugurates Gwadar-Hoshab (M-8) portion of CPEC

Army chief General Raheel Sharif drove the prime minister on the newly constructed highway

Mohammad Zafar February 03, 2016

COAS Raheel Sharif is seen driving PM Nawaz Sharif on the newly constructed patch of CPEC. PHOTO: ISPR

QUETTA: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif inaugurated on Wednesday the Rs13 billion Gwadar-Turbat-Hoshab Road (M-8), a part of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

Army chief General Raheel Sharif drove the prime minister on the newly-constructed 193-km long highway, which will connect the western, central and eastern routes of CPEC with the Gwadar Port.

#Balochistan:#COAS drives PM on newly constructed patch of CPEC Road at Hoshab,built by Army.Locals over joyed pic.twitter.com/vaogOJMJ7m
— Gen(R) Asim Saleem Bajwa (@AsimBajwaISPR) February 3, 2016

The premier on the occasion said his government accorded top priority to development in Balochistan, and regarded the road construction as a dream come true.

Govt sees 2016 as take-off year for CPEC

He termed Pakistan's prosperity as the prosperity of Balochistan.

Nawaz said Central Asian republics were keen to use the elaborate network of roads in Pakistan to reach to the open seas, adding that the road linkage would benefit as many as three billion people of the entire region.

He lauded the FWO team for completing the road despite numerous challenges, and appreciated the army chief for his interest in the project, as well as overall peace in Balochistan.

Pakistan and China had signed an agreement on April 20, 2015 to commence work on CPEC development projects worth over $46 billion, which comes to roughly 20 per cent of Pakistan’s annual GDP.

The corridor aims to connect Gwadar port in Balochistan to China’s Xinjiang region via a network of highways, railways and pipelines spread over 3,000km.

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COMMENTS (28)

Aisha | 8 years ago | Reply @Aysha Aziz: People think COAS is in opposition to Nawaz but if both want to stay, they support each other as one goes, a replacement will chuck the remaining ruler out!

K J | 8 years ago | Reply Lets see how well the roads are traveled before running our imaginations.

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Ali | 8 years ago | Reply @ghazal: Let's give credit when it's due, and stop trying to divide and reinforce the two tier system. It is a Nawaz Sharif government and General Rahil Sharif is an excellent soldier that has supported the government by all his actions. May all further generals be as devoted. Long Live PAKISTAN.

Karachiwala | 8 years ago | Reply What is the difference when Gen. Kirmani drove Nawaz Shareef and people said that kirmani had done to extend his tenure. Now same thing Gen raheel has done. Why were we critisizing gen Kiyani then?

Haji Atiya | 8 years ago | Reply @Khan: Thinking ahead, no doubt. Gwadar will become what Karachi should have been had the capital not been relocated to Islamabad.

NKAli | 8 years ago | Reply Does the PM not have anything better to do than to go around inaugurating CPEC M-8 portions? These can be done by a top class Chinese/Pakistani engineer working on the project or a Baluch minister tied to the project. By the way! Are there any Baluch citizens involved in the project? Salams

Pakistani | 8 years ago | Reply Great. Looks very good. I hope that PM and Chief of Army staff can visit places without any security.

Naveed | 8 years ago | Reply Surely when Islamabad and KKH were being built similar high hopes were expressed as to how it was going to benefit Pakistan,results are there,with no role for Baluch population CPEC will also suffer same fate

Malik Saab | 8 years ago | Reply @Jibran: The entire air traffic?. More than 160 Airlines have a permit to land in Pakistan. They are all working seamlessly. Such a pitty that you cannot differntiate between CAA and PIA. CAA ( CIvil Aviaton Authority) manages the air traffic, not PIA. Kindly get some basic knowledge and then comment.

Malik Saab | 8 years ago | Reply @CPEC?: Give me any example where on average 10 vehicles pass per day per hour from some road in the Desert and that is a Four or a Six lane motorway?. Even in Saudia Arabia the roads are like these in uninhabited zones. It is the first phase of connecting roads. This region never had any roads in the road. FWO is doing a remarkable job in laying the foundation stone of absolutely new roads. Kindly appreciate. Some people can never be happy and are negative all the time.

Khan | 8 years ago | Reply @Haji Atiya: @syedpk: M8 Motorway search on wikipedia throws this information,

"The M8 will have 4-lanes and a total length of 892 km. Initially, 2-lanes will be constructed after the completion of which another 2-lanes will be added, thus making a total of 4-lanes"

But honestly speaking why would you need 4 lane motorway for a port and adjacent small towns there is not a single mega city on the route .. the population at Gwadar and other adjacent cities is hundred time smaller than let's say Karachi- Lahore or even Peshawar.

feedback | 8 years ago | Reply @ghazal: Yes agreed, basically Nawaz Sharif is a general in disguise. He came into existence cuz of Zia. So we can say whenever PMLN is ruling the country, its a martial law in disguise. NS and RS are both the sides of the same coin.

Hameed | 8 years ago | Reply This is no CPEC just a road to try to fool the people of Baluchistan, the few that still remain alive.

Hameed | 8 years ago | Reply Travelling on newly conquered land.

Punjabi | 8 years ago | Reply The progress in Balochistan will itself destroy the resistance and rebellion. Rebellion is taking its last gasps as can be witnessed by their willingness to get involved in talks with the government.

CPEC? | 8 years ago | Reply It looks like any other 3rd World cheaply made two lane road - anecdotal evidence that CPEC is going to be a big disappointment to many.

Virkaul | 8 years ago | Reply @Malik Saab: It is a deserted road with security forces covering these VIPs at a distance.

Aysha Aziz | 8 years ago | Reply A 2 lane road,who are they fooling? If this route is safe for this photo session why not build a proper economic corridor on it? Uplift the deprived areas,end grievences against us Punjabis,unite all the provinces for good.What ever became of this COAS? backing NS government on this is shameful.

syedpk | 8 years ago | Reply Give me a break a 2 lane bidirectional highway ??

Jibran | 8 years ago | Reply What's the bigger story. Inauguration of a road or the entire air traffic coming to a halt with scores of protestors butchered. Welcome to Pakistan of the 21st century.

Guldar Ali Khan | 8 years ago | Reply Well done PM Nawaz Sharif and COAS General Raheel Sharif for evolving national consensus regarding the development-oriented national projects like CPEC. Sanguine that you would pull the country out of the myriad challenges and make it a safe and prosperous abode in the days to come.

Asad Shairani | 8 years ago | Reply Gotta hand it to the both of them. Good job Sharifs.

ghazal | 8 years ago | Reply picture says it all , who is in driving seat. pls remember it later in case expectation fail

Ali | 8 years ago | Reply Well done. Long Live Pakistan.

Virkaul | 8 years ago | Reply This road already existed. Is it that military constructed 193 KM in 4-5 months or just repaired it?

Haji Atiya | 8 years ago | Reply Is that barely 2 lane road supposed to be a highway ?

Maya | 8 years ago | Reply Good Job ..keep rokin

Malik Saab | 8 years ago | Reply Both Nawaz Sharif and General Rahil Sharif have given a great message by travelling in open ended Jeep with not much protocol. This is to signify that Security situation even in the deserted places of Balochistan is improved.

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