Announcement of Two Credits for Highways in Pakistan on June 11, 1964

Q \'. \I E I. 0 /' ,IJ I.• ' v1 , ~ ~ ) • INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION 1818 H STREET. N.W, WASHINGTON 25, D. C TELEPHONE. EXECUTIVE 3-6360 IDA Press Release No. tA/9 Subject: cred.its for highways '1\ro J1.;.ne 11, 1964 in Pakistan The International Development Association, an affiliate of the World Ban..\, to- d.e.y extended two credits totali:2g the equivalent of $39.5 million to assj_st in fin9.D.cing highway projects in Pakistan. One credit, of $22.5 million, was for the construction of a 150-mile highway between Dacca and Chittagong in East Paldstar-. ·.rhe other ere di t, of $17 million, was for the construction of a 90-mile highway between Karachi and Hyderabad and of' three b!'idges to the north in West Pakistan. Tbe credits will also finance the services of consultants to advise and assist the • highway departments in both Provinces and to undertake certain feasibility studies • East Pa¥istan Project Historically, the main mode of transport in East Pakistan has been the inland waterways,. supplemented by the railways. There are only about 3,500 miles of roads .,;hich, for the most part, are unconnected stretches· with only occasional bridges. 1 The problems of' road construction and maintenance are particularly difficult be- cause of the scarcity of construction materials and of the damage done to poorly built roads by the atinual monsoon floods. These-difficulties, together with the many river crossings which have to be made by ferry or launch, have left the Prov- ine~ with an inadegµate road networko The highway now being partially financed by the IDA credit will be the first in the Province to be designed and constructed to modern standards. It will con- nect the two major cities of the Province, Dacca, the capital, and Chittasang, the • main port, by a new 150-mile, two-lane paved road. There are three major river c:cossing~, one of which will be bridged. as part of the 'project; the other tvo ltill be i)rovicJ.ed with fer:::·ies which have ab:ea.1y been purchast;d by the I'rov:i.ncial Govero- ment.  .. 2 - With an all-weather highway and facilities for crossing the unbridged riverc, a substantial volume of through and loc~l traffic should develop between Dacca and ~ Chittagong. While bulk freight will continue to be carried by river cra:rt or rail- wc..y, the highway will be used to transport high-value freight, locally manui'actured goods and foodstuffs between the two cities and inter~ned.iate towns. The highway should also stimulate the development of local agriculture and industry by pro- viding a new and reliable connection between producing and marketing centers. The project will be carried out by tl1e Roads and Highways Departme11t of East P~kistan. Since the Department was only recently set up, general consultants will be appointed to advlse and assist it in establishing an organization capable of ::>pe::-ating and maintaining a highway system throughout the Province. The project is scheduled for completion by June 1969 at a total estimated cost equivalent to $45.5 million. The IDA credit of $22.5 million will cover·the estimated foreign • exchange component and the remaining funds will be provided by the Government of Pakistan. West Pakistan Project West Paldstan has a much more extensive road network than East. Pakistan. There ara about 21,000 miles of roads, approximately half of which are paved~ But the roads are not ~esigned or built to meet the demands of modern traffic. They are congested by increasing truck traffic and in mal:Y places by slow-moving, non- motorized vehicles. River crossings also create bottlenecks: many bridges rest on pontoons which have to be dismantled during the flood season; the permanent bridges are too narrow and long delays in crossing are ~ommon. The new road between Karachi and Hyderabad will provide the Province with its first modern highway, and will be the first section of a projected national highway which would extend from Karachi northward to Lahore, Rawalpindi and Peshawar. Karachi is the port of West Pakistan and the ma.in industrial center.. Hyderabad, • · with a population approaching one million, is the center of the important agri- cultural area of the lmver Sind and ·is of. growing industrial importi;tncc. With a  - "' - .) ~ modern highway link between these major cities, commercial and ~assenger vehicular traffic is expected to increase rapidly. The 90-mile hig.hway to be built will reduce the distance between Kara.chi and Hyderabad by about 30 mi~es and cut the traveling time for trucks and buses from 5 to 3 hotU:s. To discourage non-motori~ed, slow-moving traffic from using it, ac- cess will be limited and tolls will be levied. The existing road will continue in operation as an alternative route. The project also includes the construction of t:u-ee bridges, oyer the Jhelum~ Ravi and Sutlej Rivers, in. the north central pa.rt of West Pakistan. Two of them will supplement inadequate bridges and the third will.replace a pontoon crossing. The project will be carried out by the Communications Wing of the Communica- tions and Works Department of West Pakistan. Consultg.nts will be. retained to ad- • vise and assist the Communications Wing in building up an or.ganiza.tion capable of operating and maintaining the highway system throughout the Province. cost of the project is estimated at the equivalent of $35.5 million. The total The IDA credit of $17 million will cover the estimated foreign exchange requirements and the remaining costs will be provided by. the Government of Pakistan. ****** Since the terminal points of both highways are on tpe outskirts of the cities concerned, ste9s will be ta.ken to assure satisfactory access to them. This is particularly important in Karachi and Chittagong where much of the traffic will be generated from the two ports. The projects therefore include feasibility studies, to be carried out by consultants, of road access from the terminal points to the industrial and commercial areas of the cities. Both credits are for a term of 50 years. Repayments of :,rinci:pal will begin October 15, 1971;., aft~r a 10-year period of grace. Thereafter 110 of the principal will be repayable ~ually for 10 years and 3% will be repayable annually for the final 30 years. The credits are free o'!: interest, but a service charge of 3/4 of J.% per ammm on the amount withdrawn and outstanding Will be made to meet IDA' s administrative costs. The Government of Pakistan will relend the proceeds of the • credits to the Provincial Governments of East Pakistan and West Pakistan on IDA terms.  ¢ [[~~,. [P)~~~~ll~lNI DACCA-CHITTAGONG HIGHWAY I I I I I I PRINCIPAL EXISTING ROADS PROJECT ROAD RAILWAYS • 0 10 20 30 40 MILES • ( I ) ·1 ...S Dhoom "'"'·-·--' MAY 1964 IBRD - 1322 R •  WEST PAKISTAN ·:···,···::· • TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM .. so1okuode .~..•• :.····· PRINCIPAL EXISTING ROADS ........ PROJECT ROAD ANO BRIDGES ------- PROPOSED NATIONAL 111GHWf,1' ii II II II ii BROAD GAUGE DOUBLE TR ACK RAILWAYS BROAD GAUGE SINGLE TRACK RAILWAYS METER GAUGE S1Nr.1 E TRACK RAILWAYS :····· ::• 1° ...) 25 5 5 5 1 El 1:I E3:i3l===ji===tl°==='E=3 MILES \ Won ...:··.,... :::-~··:· .....·· ............. ........·· ····:·. ,............. : : .. : ,..l '-··: .......... &.·········· • :°'\,'-'o,..; : l>oll) ..../ ' ... Fort Ab asi ....··· r·· ...... ' •......... .../·· ~ ....·· ~-. ················· :· ········· ,,• .. ,•' ' Kholrpur N01horl Shah I. . . ··. s ·············: • JANUARY 1964 •~~o~-•~--ft MI {.ES IBRD-•~<,O