ISLAMABAD:
The National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Economic Affairs on Wednesday suggested that the Karachi Port Trust (KPT) either complete the Lyari Elevated Expressway project alone or execute it under a Public-Private Partnership (PPP)
The committee, which met under the chairmanship of Mirza Ikhtiar Baig, held a detailed discussion on the Lyari Elevated Expressway project and stressed the need for its early completion to ease traffic congestion caused by container movement in Karachi.
During the meeting, National Highway Authority (NHA) officials briefed the committee that a South Korean firm had estimated the project’s cost at Rs164 billion, while NHA’s own estimate was at Rs88 billion.
The officials said the Korean company had also proposed to build the expressway using a steel bridge.
KPT officials informed the committee that the Korean side had now estimated the total cost of the project at Rs300 billion, while NHA’s latest estimate was approximately Rs120 billion.
Committee Chairman Mirza Ikhtiar Baig described the Lyari Elevated Expressway as an extremely important project for Karachi and noted that container traffic moving through the city at night was creating serious problems for residents.
He emphasized that the project should be completed as early as possible.
The Secretary for Economic Affairs informed the committee that the loan for the project was originally to be obtained from the KPT.
He suggested that if KPT was unable to execute the project independently, it should be implemented either through a PPP or under the Public Sector Development Programme.
