KPK Government is also Taking Loan of 25 Billion Rupees from World bank for this HALAL METRO & HALAL LOAN
ADB to provide $250 million loan to KPK
Asian Development Bank (ADB) has said it will extend a soft loan of $250 million to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government for construction and rehabilitation of all highways in the province.
The bank made this announcement at the Peshawar meeting of a high-level delegation of the Bank with the Adviser to the Chief Minister on Communication and Works, Akbar Ayub Khan.
Initially the bank will provide $150 million for the reconstruction of up to 300 kilometers of provincial highways.
Later the bank will extend a $250 million soft loan upon successful and satisfactory execution of the 1st Phase.
To implement the commitment, a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was also signed between ADB and KPK Government.
KP govt to build Metro in Peshawar at RS18 bn cost (News of 2015 now cost gone up to 25 bn)
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government led by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has made the final decision to build a metro in Peshawar at a cost of Rs18 billion (or $180 million) through the Asian Development Bank (ADB) loan and plans to complete it in 30 months, documents show, writes Tariq Butt.
It will be a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) just like Lahore and Rawalpindi-Islamabad metros except for one major difference that it will have no elevated section, rather whole of it will be at grade (street level) with designated fenced bus track.
The PTI has repeatedly accused the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) of massive overspending on the Islamabad-Rawalpindi metro and stressed that it can complete this project in just Rs5 billion.
Documents, available with The News, disclose that the KP government sent a concept paper of mass transit or BRT (metro) to the federal Planning Commission (PC) informing that it has decided to construct a 27-kilometer BRT through $180 million ADB loan and sought concept clearance from the PC.
The KP government had earlier estimated its flagship Peshawar metro project to cost Rs51.67 billion, but the cost was colossally scaled down after severe criticism, by making fundamental changes in the design, totally eliminating the elevated section.
The provincial government has now proposed to spend $10 million (Rs1 billion) on project preparation and remaining Rs17 billion on construction. This is a tentative estimate and final cost will be firmed up after project design and technical details are concluded. The corridor chosen by PTI government stretches from Chamkani to Karkhanoo market.
The decision of KP government to address the growing need of urban transport has generally been appreciated. It is good that PTI has started focusing on people’s problems in line with the mandate given to it by the KP electorate. The Peshawar metro has many similarities with the first-ever famous Lahore system and some strong differences. Like Lahore, Peshawar metro is also spread over 27 kilometres; and it follows the BRT approach, meaning provision of a designated bus track.
A major difference is that the Lahore metro has 8-kilometer elevated bridge while whole of Peshawar metro will be street level track. The Lahore project took 10 months to complete whereas Peshawar metro is proposed to be completed in 30 months. Punjab built the first metro from total local resources while the KP government is seeking $180 million ADB loan. The Lahore metro did not go through a project preparatory phase while the KP administration will spend Rs1 billion under this head.
The PML-N and PTI have now apparently entered a healthy competition of projects. The political opponents of the Lahore metro have been ridiculing it, dubbing it as a “jangla bus”. The KP government’s decision signals a change of heart.
The Punjab government is completing the Rs40 billion Rawalpindi-Islamabad metro, which was started 10 months ago. Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has decided to build a metro in Multan, which is about to be started.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has provided funds for a metro in Karachi. However, the Bahria Town has also announced to build another metro in Karachi through a loan to the Sindh government. Thus, after a long debate all major political parties have decided to build metro systems in major urban centres. It will be interesting to compare costs and completion timings of these projects sponsored by the PTI, PML-N and Pakistan People’s (PPP).
According to the minutes of the Central Development Working Party (CDWP), the concept clearance proposal of the KP government envisaged development of Mass Transit Facility for providing efficient, safe, secure, comfortable, reliable and environmentally sustainable transportation system to the residents of Peshawar region. The proposal was based on the Pre-Feasibility Study conducted by the KP government jointly with assistance of Cities Development Initiative for Asia (CDIA).
The study recommended prioritizing the development of BRT on corridor 2 (Chamkani to Karkhano via GT Road) as most viable option based on available information and generic estimates. Feasibility study as well as construction of Corridor-2 was proposed to be carried out under this proposal through the ADB loan.
The provincial government highlighted the objectives of the proposed system and stated that Peshawar, the hub of the KP, has no safe, secure and economic transportation system for public. The urban population of KP is increasing at a very fast pace and traffic problem is undoubtedly one of the biggest problems faced on daily basis.
The KP government said it has realized the important role of Public Transport System in improving the city environment, and raising its social and economic conditions. It has investigated all options for Mass Transit System, and will construct the most viable mode of mass system for the general public with foreign assistance and loan.
The PC secretary enquired from Economic Affairs Division (EAD) about the status of the proposed financing and loan. The EAD representative stated that they are on board and on their advice the proposal was placed before the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) for seeking its approval prior to finalization of ADB loan, which was accorded.
