KARACHI, Feb 19: The government of Sindh has approved Sindh Road Network Master Plan and constituted a nine-member board to work out proposals in two to three weeks for implementing it.

The plan, which will cost Rs200 billion, can be completed in three to four years under public-private partnership but payments will be staggered over 10 to 20 years.

This was stated by Kaisar Bengali, former adviser to the chief minister, while talking to Dawn on Sunday about a presentation he had given to Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah on Thursday about the plan.

He said the chief minister had approved the plan.

He said the board comprised Sindh Finance Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah , additional chief secretary of planning and development, secretary works and services, secretary finance and officials of other departments concerned.

Mr Bengali, who is also a member of the board, said the chief minister stressed the need for setting priorities of the plan and directed the officials concerned to complete the Hyderabad-Mirpurkhas carriageway by April 2012.

The chief minister said N-5 project pertaining to a road from Karachi to Hyderabad via Thatta had been approved by the federal government.

Mr Bengali said financing for the projects under the master plan would not be a problem because these could be completed in three to four years through private-public partnership.

During his detailed presentation, Mr Bengali pointed out that the dual carriageway was the vision of late Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.

He said the province spent billions of rupees every year on an endless cycle of repair and rehabilitation of roads. About Rs104 billion was spent on road repairs over the past 10 years.

“The condition of roads in the province is dilapidated and as suggested if Rs100 billion be spent in the next 10 years on building quality roads through PP mode, the provincial budget for repair and rehabilitation of roads would be reduced to a fraction over the next 30 years.”

He identified three regional hubs of growth northern Sindh with its centre in Sukkur, central Sindh (Nawabshah and Dadu) and southern Sindh with its centre in Hyderabad. Cities and towns around these growth nodes (radius of 75 kms) be treated as part of the regional hub.

He said that high-speed road connectivity between these cities and towns and between the regional hubs was the key to development.

Mr Bengali proposed eight highways: Ghotki-Kandhkot-Thul-Jacobabad-Ratodero-Larkana-Khairpur (200km), Khairpur-Kotdigi-Kot Lalu-Nawabshah (155km), Dadu-Moro-Jamal Shah-Kazi Ahmad (325km), Sakrand-Nawabshah (60km), Shapur Chakar-Shahdadpur-Tando Adam- Tando Allahyar (85km), Hyderabad-Tando Mohammad Khan-Badin (100km), Hyderabad-Tando Allhyar-Mirpurkhas (60km) and Karachi-Thatta-Badin-Mithi- Islamkot (300km).

He conceded that traffic on many of the roads was not heavy, but it was due to the poor condition of the road which had failed to provide the necessary connectivity between different parts of the province, particularly with Karachi that was the main economic hub.

“Development of roads cannot await the growth of traffic rather roads need to be used as trigger for traffic growth,” he said. Connectivity will open access to agricultural produce to markets beyond the immediate vicinity and help farmers get better prices for their produce.

Mr Begali said if all development investment was made on the basis of prior demand, the world would still be in the stone age. In development dynamics, supply was often used to create demand, he added.

He said connectivity between cities, particularly with Karachi, would enable industrial growth in cities other than Karachi and Hyderabad.

He said the Hyderabad-Mirpurkhas dual carriageway would reduce commuting time to about half an hour. The synergy provided by this connectivity would be seen in the growth of the area where property prices had already increased.

The carriageway was the reflection of the vision of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto who had the courage to break out of the conventional thought and create a new path for the country.

He said it was this vision which was needed to take Sindh from the 19th century into the 21st century.

Finance Minister Syed Muraf Ali Shah, Chief Secretary Raja Muhammad Abbes, ACS (P&D) Sitar Mali, Secretary Works and Services Arid Khan and Secretary Finance Kamran Naveed Baloch supported the plan.

At present 580 schemes are under implementation in the province at a cost of Rs85 billion.