The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) has approved three projects after detailed deliberation.
The meeting which was presided over by Minister for Finance and Revenue Shaukat Tarin has approved the construction of Pak University of Engineering & Emerging Technologies (PUEET) at an estimated cost of a Rs23.54bn. This research university in Islamabad will house various centres of excellence in the cutting-edge fields of science and technology and state-of-the-art technology park. The project will result in better quality of education, build industry-academia collaboration and train graduates in new technologies.
The other two projects include the construction of Dir Motorway, sponsored by the government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and to be executed by the Pakhtunkhwa Highway Authority (PHA) with an estimated cost of Rs38.991bn.
The project envisages construction of 29.377km-long, four-lane dual carriageway from Chakdara to Rabat, Dir district, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The scope of the work includes construction of bridges, tunnels, underpasses and cross-road flyovers. The entire project is located in the Lower Dir region of KP.
The Ecnec has also approved a project sponsored by the KP government for Peshawar-D.I. Khan Motorway to be executed by the PHA. The total cost of the project is Rs276.529bn and envisages construction of 360km-long six-lane dual carriageway from Peshawar to Dera Ismail Khan. It will pass through Kohat, Hangu, Karak, Bannu, Lakki Marwat and Tank and terminate at Dera Ismail Khan.
The meeting of Ecnec was attended by Planning and Development Minister Asad Umar, Adviser to the Prime Minister on Commerce Abdul Razak Dawood, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Finance Minister Taimur Khan Jhagra and federal secretaries.
