India Could Use Pakistan’s Infrastructure

[Samlee]

TALKING ABOUT MOTORWAYS EVERYONE TOTALLY FORGOT ABOUT GWADAR DEEP SEA PORT

AND WHAT ABOUT THE NEW KARACHI DEEP WATER CONTAINER TERMINAL

 

[Asian.Century]

A major conundrum to those who visit both India and Pakistan is why the roads are so much better in the latter.

For all its problems, Pakistan’s 367-kilometer-long M2 motorway between Lahore and Islamabad strikes a visitor as being streets ahead of India’s decrepit inter-state roads even if roads minister Kamal Nath is on a binge of fund-raising to try to improve India’s highways.
For one, there’s a disciplined motorway police that patrol Pakistan’s highways and don’t take bribes. If you go above 120 kilometers an hour, and are caught on camera, a fine awaits you at the toll gate. Nonpayment means you can’t get out. The M2 motorway passes through the densely populated Punjab countryside but there are no cows, rickshaws or motorbikes coming at traffic on the wrong side of the road which is a common experience in India.

The M2 road was built in the late 1990s by South Korean firm Daewoo, whose name is still emblazoned on the modern service stations that line the route.

Sunita Kohli, a New Delhi-based interior designer who recently did work on a boutique hotel in Lahore, says she was impressed with the road compared to similar developments in India.
“We really lag behind on infrastructure,” she said. “Now we’re trying to make up for lost time.”
That’s not to say Pakistan doesn’t face its own infrastructure challenges. Its most pressing need is to build more power plants and stop people from stealing electricity to avoid hours of blackouts across the country.
And Pakistan’s motorways — at just over 600 kilometers in combine length — are only a small fraction of the total road network, much of which is old. Ms. Kohli says she sees the M2 as a “showcase.”
India still slightly edges out Pakistan in the United Nations’ Human Development Index, which measures per capita GDP, literacy, life expectancy and other development criteria.

Until a couple of years ago, Pakistan’s economy was booming and there was plenty of public and private money for infrastructure spending. Now, foreign direct investment has dried up and the government, running a large deficit, has had to turn to the IMF for more than $11 billion in loans.

But first-time visitors to Pakistan, many expecting a failed state, are surprised by some of the modern infrastructure.
Apart from the roads, Pakistan’s broadband and wireless roaming speeds also compare favorably with India. Doing business in Pakistan is easier than in India and China, according to the World Bank.
With regular Taliban suicide bombings, though, Pakistan is unable to capitalize on these positives and continues to generate only negative headlines.

P.S. Please don't make in to my d!cK is bigger than yours. Make it a friendly debate.

India Could Use Pakistan’s Infrastructure - India Real Time - WSJ

I have heard the new Karachi-Lahore Motorway and the Sialkot-Lahore Motorways will me most modern, fast, and exploring new avenues of business around the regions it passes through.

 

[livingdead]

pakistan has invested heavily in motorways compared to India. Most of our road are nowhere near what is shown about pakistan, I will happily concede this.
Its only during last Vajpayee govt road network got a boost.

 

[Pakistanisage]

Nazar na laga dayna , Yaar....

 

[Donatello]

pakistan has invested heavily in motorways compared to India. Most of our road are nowhere near what is shown about pakistan, I will happily concede this.
Its only during last Vajpayee govt road network got a boost.

Once the Karachi-Multan motorway is built, it will be a huge boost for the country as a whole. If you look at the map of Pakistan, most of the cities/towns lie along or near the banks of river Indus. So once a motorway is built, a good 70% of the population will have access to motorways within a few hours drive time. That'll be a massive achievement.

For India, the problem is you have too big a population and too many scattered cities. So you can't have one single motorway but rather a network, which will cost both time and money. It's nothing that India can't do it, but that Pakistan has it's geographical advantage and it is best if we use it to our advantage.

 

[Bonito Boy]

It's KPT (Native Jetty) Bridge in Karachi, Pakistan.

 

[ebrahym]

far eastern markets like BD, Myanmar, Nepal

sea route is more efficient for BD and myanmar however nepal is the one road leads to

 

[Post Colonnial]

In India, except a few highlighted trophy roads, the rest of them will take 2 decades or more to improve. The reasons are historical, political and unfortunately now - cultural.

* Historical - India has had bigger problems in the past. Until cars became the rage, roads were critical needs only ti the extent of shipping agricultural goods and farmers ofcourse never squealed as loudly as the maruti owners

* Political - this continues. Road construction has been under government control such as the PWD which is a) made up of same kind of babus and incapable 'civil engineers' promoted by quota system. About 10% are good - capable and motovated; the rest are all there to facilitate contracts for local and regional contracting mafias. Money is spent but output not produced.

* Cultural - this is the current problem. The government has become more efficient in decision making; but the regional and local mafias are too strong and prove to be a significant drag. It will take atleast one more term fr Modi to break the spine of this mafia culture.

 

[OrionHunter]

A 2010 thread bumped! Wow! Some guys really like history, what? A lot of water has flowed under the bridge since then! India is not what it was then. We've come a long long way, baby!

 

[Nexus]

How could we use that don't exist at all.

This is some of the illusions that pakistan has infrastructure better then India.

forget India my state Gujarat Alone have better infrastructure tn pakistan !

 

[war&peace]

Pakistan needs to improve its railway system. Perhaps the most backward and outdated railways in South Asia except Bhutan and Afghanistan. The railways have been systematically destroyed by the corrupt elite and I hear from older people that Pakistan inherited much better railways network back in 1947 than what we have been left with today. This is because of the anti-people policies of the opportunist junta that has been ruling the country since the departure of the founder of the country. While most of indicators of a developed country is how advanced, comfortable and large is the rail network in the country. That one can see in EU, Japan, Koreas and especially China. Though I'm not in favour of the fastest Maglevs as the cost of the project is prohibitive but at least conventional modern trains with speeds in north of 200 kph are not uncommon in the world and Pakistan should upgrade is entire rail system to this level within 5-10 yrs. The railways have a great influence on the environment and their use of electric power makes an easy candidate for switching to renewable sources.

 

[livingdead]

forget India my state Gujarat Alone have better infrastructure tn pakistan !

that is because gujrat is among rich states of India.. most of India has poor infra.