CM orders swift feasibility of road projects

Consultant for financial study of Dir Motorway to be hired next month

PESHAWAR:

The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Mahmood Khan on Monday directed the communication and works department to expedite work on all ongoing mega schemes in the communication sector, particularly feasibility studies for road projects.

He assured that the provincial government will provide all the required resources for the purpose.

The chief minister said this while presiding over a high-level meeting of the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) Communication and Works Department (C&WD) at the Chief Minister House on Monday.

He particularly stressed upon the expeditious completion of the financial and commercial feasibility studies of the Swat Motorway phase-II, the Peshawar-Dera Ismail Khan Motorway and the Dir Motorway.

Mahmood said that the provincial government is committed to boosting industrial and tourism activities in the province for which different communication schemes have been initiated.

The forum was told that executive committee of the national economic council (ECNEC) had approved the acquisition of land for the second phase of the Swat Motorway whereas a public-private partnership unit had recommended conducting the financial and commercial feasibility of the project.

It was also suggested that a consultancy contract will be awarded next month for commercial and financial study of the Dir Motorway. Similarly, the financial and commercial feasibility of Peshawar-DI Khan motorway will be completed by the next month.

The project concept-II (PC-II) of a 29 kilometres-long long road from Baba Serai in Buner to the Katlang interchange has been prepared and will be submitted to the relevant forum for approval.

The meeting was informed that under the K-P Integrated Tourism Development Project (KITE), work was in process on nine different, a 50 kilometre-long access roads to tourist areas in the Malakand division.

Similarly, the construction of five access roads to tourist areas in Hazara division was also part of the current development portfolio, whereas construction of a 30km-long approach road to Sheikh Badin tourist site was included in the Annual Development Programme (ADP) for the financial year 2020-21.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 23^rd, 2020.