The government has awarded the construction work of Lakpass Tunnel project to Frontier Works Organisation (FWO) at a cost of Rs 678 million, which would connect Pakistan with Iran, Afghanistan and Central Asia.
The agreement, in this connection, was formally signed by the Chairman National Highway Authority, Major General Farrukh Javed and Director General FWO, Major General Asif Ali here on Monday.
The military-run organisation will undertake the construction of tunnel on build, operate and transfer (BOT) basis in 18-month period. Lakpass lies about 27 kilometers south of Quetta, connecting it with Iran through N-40 and Karachi through N-25. It will link N-25 and N-40 leading to Iran, Afghanistan and then to Central Asia.
The project comprises construction of a tunnel and 7.3 meter wide approach road with 3 meter shoulders to the tunnel. It also includes the rehabilitation and reconstruction of the existing road to 7.3 meter width and 3 meter shoulders following the existing alignment to allow smooth flow of traffic along the Lakpass.
The government is already spending Rs 16 billion on the ongoing development projects in the troubled Balochistan for provision of road linkages to Gwadar port, high standard national highways and provincial and international linkages.
The gradient of the existing Lakpass crossing (around 3.5 kms) is 15 percent and vehicles creep up at a snail's pace. Fully loaded trucks are compelled to hire tractors to pull them through this segment which charge up to Rs 150 to Rs 200 per truck for assistance. As, Lakpass is a critical link for vehicles plying on N-40 and N-25, there was a dire need to remove such bottlenecks. The re-modelled Lakpass would also help in generating the economic activities in the region.