Country Will Get Benefit From CPEC Projects Soon: Asim Bajwa

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 5th May, 2021 ) :Chairman CPEC Authority Lt. General (retd) Asim Saleem Bajwa Tuesday said that with the start of second phase of China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), the benefits of the projects had started pouring in as number of new jobs are being created.

A number of infrastructure projects have already been completed while two important projects on the Western alignment of CPEC-Hakla (Islamabad)-Dera Ismail Khan and Basima-Khuzdar roads are being completed in current year, he said while talking to a news channel.

Asim Bajwa said on the Eastern alignment, only one section Sukkur-Hyderabad was left that has already been launched by the Prime Minister recently. He informed that the Request for Proposals (RFP) for this project to be completed under Public Private Partnership mode which would be floated within a month and after that ground work would be started.

He said work on all other sections of the Western route such as D.I.Khan to Zhob, Zhob to Quetta, Quetta to Khuzdar, Khuzdar to Awaran and Hoshab has already been started and all these projects would be completed soon.

With respect to Special Economic Zones under CPEC, the Chairman informed that in Rashakai SEZ, 1000 acre of land had been allocated but some 2000 applications had so far been received for which 3600 acres of land was required.

"So keeping in view the rising interests of the foreign and as well as local investors in the SEZ, we have talked to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to acquire more land to fulfill the demand," he added.

He said in Dhabeji SEZ Sindh, 70 percent work of gas supply had been completed. Likewise, he said lot of investors are interested in Dhabeji zone which is more suitable for many of them because of easy approach to Karachi port.

Asim Bajwa informed that Canadian, German, and British joint ventures have applied for In Allama Iqbal SEZ Faisalabad, similarly a group of Pakistani American doctors is also interested in electro medical equipment manufacturing.

In agriculture sector, he said "we are moving towards corporate farming and community farming for which we are working with the provinces". Similarly in industrialization sector, in Rashakai and Faisalabad the work is in full swing and number of industries are being installed.

He said the Chinese agriculture experts are interested to grow cotton and other crops in the deserted areas in Sindh by using the state of the art technology.