National Highway Authority (NHA) has finally restored the M8 Motorway between Gwadar and Ratodero following the orders from Prime Minister Pakistan Shahbaz Sharif.
Talking to the media in this regard, the NHA spokesperson said that the authority has opened up the road for one-way traffic for the convenience of the residents of Gwadar, Khuzdar, Awaran, and Rato Dero.
Molana Asad Mehmood, Minister for Communications stated that the department will soon restore the remaining national highways as well. The restoration of M8 will facilitate expediting flood relief activities.
This year in June, NHA took over the construction of a 168-kilometer-long missing link in the M-8 Motorway with an estimated cost of Rs. 8 billion construction fund. The M-8 Motorway runs between Ratodero, Sindh, and Gwadar Port, passing through the Awaran, Khuzdar, Hoshab, and Turbat areas of Balochistan.
In a similar development?last week, the authority cordoned off the Karachi-Larkana Indus Highway due to the flood. NHA informed the media that the road adjacent to Khairpur Nathan Shah, Mehar, and Sehwan toll plazas is inaccessible because of 3 feet of flood water. The highway was closed by the authority indefinitely as it is unknown when the flood water will drain.
The floods have also severely damaged different parts of GT road around Kandiar, Nowshero, Qazi Ahmed, and Jahanian. The devastation has ultimately increased travel time between Sukkur and Karachi from six hours to fifteen hours.
Meanwhile, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said that over 5,000 kilometers of roads have been severely damaged across Pakistan due to devastating floods and heavy rainfall.
On the other hand, the splashing water from Manchhar Lake partially collapsed a bridge near Sehwan city and disconnected Dadu and Larkana districts from both sides of the Indus Highway.?As per National Highways & Motorway Police (NHMP), traffic going to Dadu was blocked because of floodwater on Indus Highway near Sehwan.?