Balochistan is a land of mesmerizing rugged mountains, parched valleys and gigantic plains. With the developments like the Gwadar Port and the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), Balochistan will emerge as a famous place. Different state organs are using multi-layered apparatus to harness the efforts for developments in Balochistan. However, the most vital effort among others is, the infrastructure developments.

The National Highway Authority’s (NHA) executive board had permitted the construction of the Yakmach-Kharan road in Balochistan, which costs Rs4.953 billion. Moreover, the project will be implemented under the Public Sector Development Program (PSDP). Earlier an amount of Rs13.758 billion, was approved by the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC). The PSDP has allocated Rs3 billion for the year 2017-2018. The road will be constructed in the least developed areas of Balochistan.

Likewise, the establishment of nine Emergency Response Centres (ERC) have been approved by NHA in Balochistan. The NHA will establish the response centres, equipped with facilities, which include: doctors, paramedics and ambulances, to provide timely aid and care to those injured in road accidents on the national highways. These centres will be set up in Dhanasar, Mina Bazar, Kalat, Surab, Wad, Kararo, Nag, Wangu and Hoshab.

The vast stretches of Makran, remain inaccessible from the mainland due to the absence of durable and dependable roads. The 650 km long Makran Coastal Highway was the first of these roads taken up to connect Gwadar with Karachi. The setting up of Gwadar Port originated as a big catalyst for the development of Makran. However, its feasibility depends on the convenient and dependable roads to connect it with the rest of the country, particularly with Karachi, Quetta and Indus Highway.

Interestingly, the warm waters of Pakistan’s Arabian Sea coasts serve as the natural choice for the huge landlocked region comprising Afghanistan, Central Asia and Western China. The access to these regions from Gwadar and Karachi is the shortest and most convenient. Moreover, there is no doubt that CPEC will benefit one-third of the world’s population residing in the proximity of CPEC axis. The enthusiasm for CPEC can be assessed from the response of the Governments of Afghanistan, Iran and Central Asian countries, who have expressed their keenness to join the project.

FWO was tasked to lay a network of roads for the much-needed connectivity of Gwadar Port with up country as part of CPEC. FWO is constructing 873 km of roads in Balochistan as part of Western Route of CPEC to operationalize Gwadar Deep Sea Port by enhancing its connectivity. The road projects being undertaken are:

• Hoshab-Turbat-Gwadar Section (M-8) 193 Km
• Khuzdar-Shahdadkot Section (M-8) 58 Km
• Sorab-Besima-Nag-Panjgur (N-85) 430 Km
• Kalat-Quetta-Chaman Road (N-25) 110 Km
• Wagum-Rud-Khajuri Road (N-70) 64 Km

The M-8 Motorway reflects the vision of a progressive Balochistan. It is the first motorway of the province, which will connect Gwadar with Indus Highway. The road connects with Gwadar, Turbat, Hoshab, Awaran, Khuzdar and Rattodero (near Larkana). The N-85 Highway is also known as the Gwadar-Quetta link. It starts from Hoshab and moves northwards towards Quetta passing through Panjgur-Besima and Sorab from where it merges with the Karachi-Quetta Highway (N-25) at Kalat. The Kalat-Quetta-Chaman road (N-25) serves as an important trade route between Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Balochistan is on the verge to become a developed province. The people of Balochistan will be extremely satisfied at the completion of these projects. These developments will eventually curb terrorism and insurgency.

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