Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani is likely to inaugurate Gwadar-Pleri-Jiwani road project, costing Rs 2.5 billion. The project, which is near completion, will connect Gwadar Port with the upcountry. The project was scheduled to be completed in June 2008, but was delayed because funds were not released in time.
A senior official in the Ministry of Communication told Business Recorder here on Thursday that the project was part of Makran Coastal Highway, which is 639-kilometre long. It starts from Sheikh Raj on the main RCD Highway and ends at Gabd near Pakistan-Iran border. He said that the total length of the road was about 67 kilometres, contract of which was awarded to the Frontier Works Organisation (FWO).
"The project includes construction of six major and 218 small bridges", said an official, adding that the highway would provide an all weather road to the population of the entire coastal belt and would facilitate communication and trade by linking Karachi with Ormara, Pasni, Gwadar and Jiwani ports. "It also caters to the needs of the international traffic from Iran, Gulf and Central Asian states and facilitates trade activities between Pakistan and these countries," he said.
He further said that the construction of Gwadar-Pleri-Jiwani section of the coastal highway was part of the government's plan to develop Balochistan province and provide connectivity to the Gwadar Port, which is expected to play a major role in the country's economic development in the coming years.
The official said that the project was important in more ways as it was in the province of Balochistan, which was already high on the government's agenda for number of reasons. Besides, it was part of the government's overall plan to establish national trade corridor, an important aspect of which was to provide connectivity to Gwadar Port with the upcountry to facilitate the future trade with the Central Asian Republics (CAR).
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