Bilawal inaugurates 39 km signal-free Shahrah-e-Bhutto, launches port corridor project

Pakistan People’s Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Friday inaugurated the 39 kilometer signal-free Shahrah-e-Bhutto from Qayyumabad to M-9 highway and laid the foundation stone for the Qayyumabad Corridor project from Karachi Port.

The inauguration ceremony of Phase III of Shahrah-e-Bhutto was held in Karachi today after which the road was opened to the public up to M-9 Kathore Bridge.

Bilawal attended the ceremony along with Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah.

Among those present at the event were Sindh Assembly Speaker Awais Qadir Shah, senior PPP leaders Nisar Khuhro and Qaim Ali Shah, senior minister Sharjeel Inam Memon, Sindh Cabinet members, MNAs, MPAs and Cabinet Secretaries.

During the ceremony, the PPP chairman also laid the foundation stone of Shahrah-e-Bhutto Phase II, which will connect Karachi Port through the corridor.

Addressing the ceremony, Bilawal said that since 2008, PPP had delivered more development projects to Karachi than any other party.

He said that although he inaugurated development projects across the country, inaugurating projects in Karachi brought him “special happiness” as he was born and brought up in the city.

The PPP chairman said Pakistan Steel Mills had also been established under former prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, adding that Shahrah-e-Faisal and Lyari Expressway were among the major projects delivered by the PPP to the city.

He said that Karachi was offering free quality healthcare facilities because of his party’s policies, adding that people from all over the country wanted to settle in the metropolis.

“I invite them wholeheartedly,” he said, describing Karachi as Pakistan’s economic and health capital.

In response to criticism of the 18th Amendment, Bilawal invited his political opponents to compare the state of the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases before and after the constitutional amendment.

He said the PPP government had expanded a network of free, high-quality healthcare services across Sindh, adding that treatment of international standards was being provided free of charge.

The PPP chairman said he remained committed to complete the mission and the unfinished battle of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto.

“As Benazir Bhutto’s son, I have completed this project,” he said, adding that the PPP had demonstrated its ability to complete major infrastructure projects.

Bilawal said Shahrah-e-Bhutto had been built under a public-private partnership model, adding that the project had been completed on the same lines as the Thar coal initiative.

He said it was the government’s responsibility to solve the problems facing the country, Sindh and Karachi.

Referring to the economic situation, the PPP chairman said that the economic difficulties continued to increase while the burden of global conflicts was also borne by the common people.

He said the effects of tensions between Iran and the United States were being felt by the public in the form of higher fuel and electricity costs.

Those working for peace and a ceasefire are “doing God’s work”, he said, adding that if the conflict continued, he feared the people of Pakistan would face serious hardship.

Bilawal said prayers were offered for the efforts of the field marshal and the prime minister’s team aimed at achieving a ceasefire and expressed hope that peace efforts would succeed soon.

He said the government was continuing efforts to resolve public issues and added that the Sindh government was providing subsidies to farmers through the Kissan Card scheme as well as assistance to motorcycle riders.

Shahrah-e-Bhutto reflects the PPP vision, says CM Murad

Earlier during the ceremony, CM Shah congratulated the people of Pakistan on the completion of Shahrah-e-Bhutto and described it as a modern expressway project that would provide “stress-free travel” to commuters across the country.

He said the project was among the schemes envisaged for Karachi under the Rs.121 billion development package announced by Benazir.

The chief minister said the road had been named after the PPP, which he credited with giving the country its nuclear programme.

CM Shah said Shahrah-e-Bhutto would be opened from Qayyumabad to M-9 highway, facilitating smooth traffic movement for people traveling from different parts of the country.

He said the project took about four to four-and-a-half years to complete, adding that efforts were made to ensure that no one was displaced during construction.

“Such speed of work is rarely seen anywhere in Pakistan,” he said.

The chief minister said Bilawal had also laid the foundation stone for the Qayyumabad-to-port portion of the project, which would be completed under a public-private partnership at an estimated cost of Rs 65 billion.

Expressing hope that the next phase would be completed before the next general election, he said that all traffic connected to Karachi Port would eventually be shifted to the corridor.

Describing Shahrah-e-Bhutto as a difficult task, Shah said the project was bigger in both length and width than the Lyari Expressway.

He said the government intended to complete the next phase within two and a half years.

Referring to criticism of the PPP, the chief minister said expectations from the party remained high because it was in government.

“People complain to PPP because they consider it their own party and also expect solutions from it,” he said.

Shah said development projects worth Rs1.7 trillion were underway in Karachi, including schemes worth Rs528 billion being executed through foreign funding.

Noting that Karachi was a city of more than 20 million people, he said relocation issues often caused hardship to affected residents who naturally expressed their concerns.

The chief minister said the PPP expected to secure more votes in the next elections, claiming that the party had received its highest ever electoral support in the 2024 polls.

During the ceremony, Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab also hailed the project and said that the PPP leadership fulfilled promises made to the people of Karachi, adding that Chairman Bilawal often asked about the progress of projects in the city.

Responding to the criticism against the party, he said those who claimed that the PPP was not working should “look at Shahrah-e-Bhutto”.

He said Lyari Expressway had taken 16 years to complete and required relocation of thousands of residents, while Shahrah-e-Bhutto would ease traffic movement from across the country.

Wahab added that OPP formulated policies for the entire country and was not limited to the areas around GT Road.

Special Assistant on Public-Private Partnership Naveed Qamar described the occasion as “a matter of pride” and said that while Phase III had been inaugurated, the foundation stone for the stretch from Qayyumabad to the port had also been laid and work on the project would begin immediately.

He thanked all the project partners and said that the Sindh government had reposed its faith in the team while Chairman Bilawal had been regularly pushing for the progress of the project.

According to him, Shahrah-e-Bhutto Phase III was completed at a cost of Rs65 billion, while another approximately Rs65b would be spent on the Qayyumabad-to-port section.

PPP Karachi Division President Saeed Ghani said the Sindh government was carrying out hundreds of development projects in Karachi, adding that critics failed to recognize the work being done.

He said that if the people of Karachi were unhappy with the PPP, the city would not have elected a PPP mayor. He added that for the first time in its history the party had secured such a large number of MNAs and MPAs from Karachi and expressed confidence that the PPP would also win the next local government elections.