NHA asked to hire consultants for Kabul-Islamabad motorway

KABUL government has directed the National Highway Authority (NHA) to begin the process for hiring consultants to conduct a feasibility study for the proposed Peshawar-Kabul Motorway, a Rs80 billion project.

A Pakistani newspaper, citing government documents, reported on Thursday said the NHA was preparing to hire consultants for the long-delayed project, which would take three years to construct. 

In addition to boosting trade between the two neighbours, the motorway will give Pakistan badly-needed access to vast Central Asian market.

NHA spokesman Kashif Zaman told the newspaper Kabul requested Islamabad to construct the motorway. At a meeting in August 2013, the Afghan foreign minister urged his Pakistani counterpart to implement the scheme.

The process for hiring feasibility study consultants is expected to be completed in six months. It will be a four-lane access-controlled motorway — 281 kilometres in length and divided into three packages.

According to the NHA spokesman, the Peshawar-Torkham (50km) will be constructed from scratch. The existing structure of the Torkham-Jalalabad (76km) and Jalalabad-Kabul (155km) road will be upgraded.

PAN Monitor/mud

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