DI Khan Motorway behind schedule

Inauguration date changed five times by National Highway Authority

ISLAMABAD:

The Hakla-DI Khan Motorway, being constructed under China Pak Economic Corridor (CPEC), has been well behind the schedule as the inauguration dates have been changed at least five times by the National Highway Authority (NHA).

Official sources told The Express Tribune that the construction of petrol pumps, tuck shops and other facilities is yet to be completed and that was why the inauguration dates were being frequently delayed and changed by the authorities. An official of the NHA, however, claimed that next month the motorway will be finally inaugurated and opened for the general public, hopping that there will be no more delays.

The Halka-DI Khan Motorway will cut the travel time between Islamabad and DI Khan considerably and it will bring positive changes to the far flung parts of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) and Punjab provinces by connecting them the federal capital.

“The project had to be completed till June 2021. It is the Western part of the CPEC which include the Rehman Khel to Kot Bilian and Daud Khel to Trip, Trip to Pindigap and Pindigap to Hakla,” informed the official, adding that due to the slow pace of work the completion date of the motorway was changed from June to October and then to November but NHA failed to inaugurate it in November too as per its announcement.

“There are a lot many other problems including failure on the part of NHA to deploy police along the motorway neither is there any petrol pump in working condition along the entire length of the motorway so the NHA is hesitant to open it for general public,” he added.

It is worth mentioning here that the Halka-DI Khan Motorway is 280 kilometer in length and it ends in DI Khan district of K-P near Yareek.

When contacted the spokesperson of NHA Sohail Aftab said that the Hakla-DI Khan Motorway is a mega project and the Prime Minister Imran Khan is expected to inaugurate it in December. He said that all kinds of facilities will be available for travellers on the motorway and if any shortcoming is found after the inauguration then it would be removed once the project is opened for general public.

Traveling from Peshawar to DI Khan takes at least eight hour despite the fact that it is not too far away because the road is very poor in condition and vehicles have to go slowly. The local residents of the southern districts including Bannu, Karak, Lakki Marwat and DI Khan have long demanded the construction of a motorway so that to cut the travel time considerably. The Hakla-DI Khan will at least connect the area to Islamabad and people will be able to reach Islamabad in a few hours.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 24^th, 2021.