The Havelian-Thakot section of the Hazara Motorway was formally opened for the public on Tuesday.
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Mahmood Khan formally inaugurated the 118-kilometre-long project on Tuesday.
The section, which has been built under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), was completed in 42 months for Rs133 billion.
The expressway starts at Havelian and connects Abbottabad, Mansehra, Shinkiari and Thakot. Addressing the inaugural ceremony, Mahmood termed the project as vital for the development of the entire region, particularly in boosting both tourism and trade, creating job opportunities and provide quality communication facilities to locals.
The chief minister further said that the Joint Cooperation Committee (JCC) of CPEC, which recently met in Islamabad, had decided to include some mega developmental schemes of K-P including the Peshawar-Dera Ismail Khan Motorway, the Chashma Right Bank Lift Canal Project, Swat Motorway Phase-II and four hydel power projects.
Taking a swipe at previous regimes, the chief minister said that such mega developmental schemes for the province were never included in the CPEC project before which was sheer injustice with the province.
Responding to allegations from the opposition about the second phase of the Swat Motorway, Mahmood categorically refuted assertions that funds for any project - particularly the Chakdara-Chitral road - had been diverted to the construction of the Swat Motorway. He added that under CPEC, funds for any particular project could not be diverted to any other project.
“Hazra and Malakand Divisions have huge potentials of tourism and the government will utilize all available resources to develop infrastructure in these areas to boost tourism activities to create maximum employment opportunities for the people,” he said, adding that to facilitate easy access to tourist destinations in the Malakand division, the first phase of the Rashakai-Chakdara Motorway has been completed, while the Chakdara-Swat Motorway section will be constructed in the next phase.
He reiterated his resolve to develop all the areas of the province equally, particularly the newly merged districts.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 30th, 2020.
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