Gwadar not working on commercial lines: FPCCI

[Naveed Yaseen]

KARACHI: Gwadar Port, the third of its kind in Pakistan declared functional in 2004, has not yet started working on commercial basis, said the FPCCI President, Sultan Ahmed Chawla.

In a statement, Chawla demanded that the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) should be taken into confidence about the progress and development of the port and the project should be fully activated in the real sense.

A master plan prepared for the development of Gwadar was approved in March 2004. The western portion, which is away from the port, was reserved for the development of residential areas while the eastern portion was marked for the establishment of industries and warehouses.

Several projects had been planned for the provision of infrastructure, which included a 950km railway and 900km motorway to link with the railway and highway systems of the country.

However, “The port is still not contributing its share towards economic development. This is because all these expected benefits remain in files and there is nothing on the ground so far in and around Gwadar to facilitate such activities,” Chawla said.

He said a nearly 750km coastal road from Karachi to Jiwani near the Iranian border had been in operation for some time. But a 200km branch road which would link the coastal road to the Indus Highway at Ratto-Dera was still not developed.

Referring to a fact-finding report of the FPCCI research team, he said there were no internal roads, water, gas and communication services for the newly built township and industrial zone.

“There are not even any warehouses or cold storages in the area.” He said no significant progress had been made for the development of commercial and residential areas, with no labour amenities for accommodating thousands of workers to be employed on a functional seaport.

He further added that the Gwadar Port project was given to a Singapore-based company for efficient development and attracting foreign investment.

http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=200746