MULTAN: Alwash Jumbrani took three days to reach the Jampur Tehsil Headquarters hospital from his home in the tribal region of Khalchaas. With seven-month daughter in his arms, the 100-kilomtre long journey would not have been a big ordeal for the tribal man and his wife, which they they often cover on foot or hitch a ride from four-wheeler vehicles. Hill torrents turned the mountainous pass into a channel of flood, leaving the couple to helplessly wait for lowering of the flooding.

After three days, the couple was able to arrive at the Jampur hospital. This happened not two or three decades ago. It happened with the tribal couple just 10 days ago.

Jampur doctors referred the infant to the Nishtar Hospital in Multan because of her critical condition. She is suffering from bacterial pneumonia and malnutrition.

The Jampur-to-Multan journey, though 138 kilometres, was done in just two hours.

A good road connection made the difference.

Most of the tribal and rural areas of Dera Ghazi Khan and Rajanpur districts are among the several districts of Punjab which lack road infrastructure.

A research study, jointly by the Lahore University of Management Sciences and Oxfam GB Pakistan, corroborates the fact that districts from southern Punjab are the most deprived in terms of road density.

North Punjab districts are on the other side of density index.

A comparison in the research indicates that Rajanpur, Bahawalpur, Dera Ghazi Khan, Layyah, Bhakkar, Attock, Khushab, Gujrat, Rahim Yar Khan, Multan, Bahawalnagar, Mianwali, Muzaffargarh and Sahiwal are the least developed districts of the province in terms of road infrastructure while Lahore, Sargodha, Faisalabad, Rawalpindi, Vehari, Okara, Toba Tek Singh, Khanewal, Jhang, Kasur, Sheikhupura, Chakwal, Jhelum, Gujarwanwala and Sialkot have the maximum road infrastructure.

“It can be argued that inequality in road density may be responsible for lower levels of industrial concentration, higher poverty levels and greater income inequality in southern districts because the lack of connectivity with demand centres may be promoting market failures in factor markets (e.g., labour and capital markets) and product markets,” the report explains.

Other than downward industrial growths, the lack of roads keep killing the people, former MPA Athar Khan Gurchani says. Though he did not share the figure, he said dozens of tribesmen, mostly children, died of the lack of road infrastructure.

“There is only one road in the entire tribal area of Rajanpur,” he goes on.

In the 90s, funds were provided by the Asian Development Bank to construct a 38-km road from Tibbi Saidan to Maarri in the tribal area. An eight-km portion remained incomplete, he said.

He said that on his request, then prime minister Yousaf Raza Gilani provided Rs80 million for the completion and repairing of the road in 2009.

“The road was completed in 2010. Now, it needs to be repaired again as the heavy rains and flooding damaged it badly last year,” he said.

He underscored the need to build Khalchaas-to-Maarri Road (22 km), Fort Munro-to-Tibbi Lunddan Road (40 km) and Dragul-to-Maarri Road via Chacha Chitri (20 km).

Rights activist and writer Allah Bakhsh Buzdar knows the tribal areas like the back of his hands.

He said the tribal areas of Rajanpur and Dera Ghazi Khan in the Sulaiman Mountains Range were larger than the settled area of both districts. He says the tribal area is approximately 5,000 square miles while the settled area is nearly 4,500 square miles.

The tribal area has not got its due share of roads, he says.

He said the only road linking Dera Ghazi Khan with Rukni and Loralai (Balochistan) via Fort Munro was constructed during the British rule.

“The 53-mile road passes through 24 miles of the tribal areas,” he said.

He said that 45-km Barthi-Chowkiwala Road was constructed in two phases - from Chowkiwala to Zainin the 70s , while the remaining part in the 80s.

He said the road was reconstructed in 2011-12 but rainwater washed it away.

He said Taunsa-Musakhel Road was approved in 2005. The Balochistan government has completed its 42-km portion from Musakhel to Qutba but the Punjab government has yet to complete the task.

He said the Pakistan Public Works Department started work in 2006 but so far only six km was constructed.

He demanded that besides completing Taunsa-Musakhel Road, Barthi-Chowkiwwala Road be reconstructed by extending it to Kharar Buzdar. He also suggest construction of roads from Sakhi Sarwar to Mubaraki (30 km), Mubarki to Kharar Buzdar (20 km), Hinglon Kutch to Kingri (22 km), Phugla to Chitrwata (40 km), Dhodhak to Bachal (20 km) and Phugla to Dhodhak via Kamavail (20 km).

Punjab Assembly Deputy Speaker Sher Ali Gurchani says the government is alive to the need of road needs and a plan is in the working.

He said 33 km road would be constructed in Jampur under the Khadim-i-Punjab Rural Roads Programme while 150 km roads would be proposed for the district in the next fiscal year 2015-16.

He said a Rs5 billion project was being executed for the development of Jampur in which road projects were also included, while Rs1 billion road projects each for Rojhan and Rajanpur were under process.

He said that under the Tribal Area Development Project, Harand-to-Chitri via Sakhi Mureed Borbakhsh Road (33 km) and Shahzad Gor to Khanr Khand Road (9 km) were being constructed while a semi-metal road from Khanr Khand to Shero Sain had also been proposed.

He added Maarri to Khalchaas Road would be proposed in the next financial year that would later be linked with Balochistan.

Tribal Area Development Project Project Director Tahir Khurshid said the construction of 197-km roads were being built, of which six road projects would be in Dera Ghazi Khan district.

Away from the quagmire of figures and plans, Jumbrani is praying for the early recovery of her only daughter.

“God willing, we’ll reach home within 24 hours once my daughter is discharged from the hospital,” he says.

Published in Dawn, April 2nd, 2015

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