950806

PM stresses expansion

of national highways on

international standards

LAHORE: Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto has called for expansion of national highways according to international standards, ensuring quality of work and completion within stipulated period, for making Pakistan trade centre of Asia.

She noted with satisfaction that an agreement has already been signed between Pakistan, China, Kryghystan and Kazakhistan for trade by road and was confident that its implementation will go a long way in making this country centre of trade for Asia.

The Prime Minister said this while presiding over a meeting of the National Highway Council, the supreme body in respect of highways projects, at the state guest house in Lahore on Sunday afternoon. The Prime Minister is the Chairperson of the council which also includes the chief ministers of the four provinces as its members among others.

She appreciated the efforts being made by the Federal Communications Ministry and the National Highway Authority for revival of communication links between Pakistan and Central Asian countries.

Prime Minister Benazir said that expansion of highways would also help cities and towns in becoming important trade centres along these roads network.

She said that economic policies of Pakistan are based on the theme of self-reliance and pointedly mentioned that her government wanted to utilize local resources more than relying on foreign loans alone.

The council during it less than an hour deliberations approved a package for private investment in the execution of National Highway Authority projects under which foreign investors would be able to invest in highways projects.

It also discussed Iranian government's offer for investment in construction of national highways in Pakistan.

As a major decision, the council approved construction of a national highway along the coastal area costing Rs.16 billion and okayed the Tehran's investment offer for this project.

In the first phase of the package approved by the council, Gwadur-Pasni-Ormara-Lyari hihway will be constructed for which Iran will provide 40 percent of the total cost i.e. Rs.6 billion. Construction of Quetta-Dalbandin road will start next year.

The council also set up a special committee with deputy chairman of the Planning Commission Qazi Alimullah as its head for formulation of a policy for investment particularly by the private sector in the national highways projects.

The committee also includes federal secretaries for finance and communications and NHA chairman as its members. Planning and development chiefs of the four provinces will also be invited to meetings of this special committee.

The prestigeous-turned controversial Islamabad-Lahore motorway project also figured during the deliberations though it could not be ascertained from official quarters immediately into what context the Korean contractors project came up for discussion briefly.

Earlier, NHA chairman Shahid Aziz Siddiqui while briefing the council about authority's projects, said that Karachi-Lahore-Peshawar dual carriageway would be completed next year, Indus Highway will be completed by 1997 to reduce journey between Karachi to Peshawar by about 400 kilometers and pointed out that an alloçation of Rs. one billion has been made as a special case for establishing road links between Pakistan and Central Asian Republics for launching of trade by road in a big way.

The council meeting, which also took some other decisions in terms of toll on bridges and national highways, was attended among others by NWFP Governor Major General (Rtd) Khurshid Ali Khan, chief ministers Mian Manzur Ahmad Wattoo of Punjab and Nawab Zulfiqar Ali Magsi of Balochistan, Senior Sindh Minister Syed Pervaiz Ali Shah, Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission Qazi Alimullah and Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister Ahmed Sadiq.