Islamabad: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Monday inaugurated five Pakistan-China Friendship Tunnels built by China in Hunza valley of Pakistan’s northern Gilgit-Baltistan region.
The tunnels are part of the 24-km portion of the Karakoram Highway linking Pakistan and China, which landslides damaged in 2010 and formed a lake at Attabad by blocking river flow.
Two bridges and 78 small bridges have also been constructed on the rebuilt section of the highway, the official media reported.
The tunnels have been constructed by the National Highway Authority (NHA) in collaboration with the China Road and Bridge Corporation to restore part of the road submerged by the Attabad Lake.
The project has been completed in a span of three years and two months.
On the occasion, NHA officials briefed the prime minister on the details of the project and status of ongoing upgradation of other parts of the Karakoram Highway.
The prime minister said that the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor project would greately benefit all regions of the country including Gilgit-Baltistan.
The corridor will link Gawadar deepsea port in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province with Kashgar in western China. The mega project envisages Chinese investments worth $46 billion (Dh168.8 billion).
