Minister for Planning Ahsan Iqbal has said the groundbreaking of Gwadar International Airport and Eastbay Expressway will take place later this year while the Gwadar University will be made operational from September this year.
He said this while talking with a delegation of Gwadar Press Club on Monday. Under the China -Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project, Gwadar seaport, airport, expressway, hospital and technical and vocational training institute will be established in the port city.
“Gwadar city will not only be a port city but a centre of socio-economic activities for the local people,” the minister said.
Gwadar will be connected with other parts of the country by end of this year as work on the western route including Gwadar to Quetta road and Gwadar-Khuzdar-Ratodero section is on fast track. D I Khan to Burhan section will be completed by June 2018. He said the CPEC will help upgrade the local fishing and ship building so that the people can get better livelihood.
He said the CPEC is a 15-year project which will be completed in 2030 with special focus on infrastructure development, Gwadar port, energy and economic zones. He said that the Orange Train project was not part of the CPEC as this project is funded by the Punjab government.
The minister said the administrative work on CPEC is the responsibility of the Ministry of Planning with the help of other ministries and departments while the Pakistan Army is responsible to provide security. He said that on the instructions of the prime minister to the army chief, 9,000 army men are being employed as the security force for CPEC projects. Both the civil and military departments are playing their functions satisfactorily and in harmony, he said.