The National Highway Authority (NHA) executive board on Monday approved award of contract for construction of 454-km Surab-Hoshab road costing Rs 17 billion. The board met under Chairman NHA, Major General Imtiaz Ahmed here says a press release.
Speaking on the occasion, the chairman NHA said that Surab-Hoshab road was extremely vital to establish link with the Gwadar Port. He said the project was part of Gwadar-Rethodero Motorway (M-8) and would link Surab with Hoshab while passing through the towns of Basima, Nag and Panjgur. He said the project would link the far-flung areas of the Balochistan and would contribute enormously towards the economic uplift of the people of those areas.
The chairman also informed the meeting that the government had approved release of Rs 5 billion required for the completion of Islamabad-Peshawar Motorway (M-1) saying the project would be completed by the end of this year. He said the alignment for Faisalabad-Khanewal Motorway (M-4) had been finalised and work on the project would start soon.
The executive board also gave approval for acquisition of military land required for the construction of Islamabad-Murree Carriageway (IMDC). The chairman informed the meeting that almost 70 percent of the work on the project was completed and hoped that it would be opened for traffic later this year. He said the road would be extended up to Muzaffarabad, once completed.
Additional Secretary, Finance Muhammad Ayoub Khan Tarin, Member Planning Commission, Dr Asad Ali Shah, Joint Secretary Communications, Firdous Alam, President Nespak Karamtullah Chaudhry, IG Motorway Police Raffat Pasha, and senior members from national highway authority attended the meeting.