CPEC Western route likely to be completed in time

ISLAMABAD, January 25: The western alignment routes of the game-changer China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project is likely to be completed in the stipulated time of three years.
Work on various road projects of the CPEC Western Route has been accelerated in order to ensure their timely completion, officials said.
As per details, on the CPEC Western Route, the completed projects on the Western alignment of CPEC include the 297 km Hakla-DI Khan Motorway, the 235 km Quetta-Sohrab road, the 449 km Surab-Hoshab road, and the 193 km Hoshab-Gwadar road.
Whereas, the under-construction projects on the CPEC Western Route include the 305 km Zhob-Quetta road, the 110 km Basima-Khuzdar road, the Nokundi-Mashkel road and the 146 km Hoshab-Awaran road.
The projects on the Western Route that are in the pipeline include the 360 km Peshawar-D I Khan motorway, the 460 km Karachi-Quetta-Chaman road, the 200 km Mashkhel-Panjgur road, the 163 km Awaran-Khuzdar road, the 228 km Panjgur-Awaran road, and the 136 km Awaran-JhalJao-Bela road.
Work on the 210-kilometer D.I. Khan (Yarik)-Zhob Road (N-50) and Zhob-Quetta (N-50) roads have already been completed while work on the 431 km Khuzdar-Quetta-Chaman Section of N-25 is also in progress. The Surab-Hoshab at N-85 and Gwadar-Turbat-Hoshab (M-8) are already operational.
Similarly, the sources said that work on the 106 km Basima-Khuzdar road, Quetta to Khuzdar road and Khuzdar to Awaran and Hoshab road has also been started and would complete soon. The sources added that the work on the western alignment routes of CPEC would be completed within three years.
All routes of the western alignment go through remote areas where the poverty rate is higher, jobs are less and industrial development and infrastructure is very low, thus completion of these projects will usher in the prosperity of the areas.
The sources said the country is entering into the second phase of CPEC as it is moving beyond infrastructure to focus on agriculture, particularly economic zones to boost industrialization. More sectors such as science, technology, information technology and agriculture sectors have also been included in the mega project of CPEC. -TLTP