BATKHELA: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Pervez Khattak has said that huge employment opportunities would be created in the Malakand region with the completion of the Swat Expressway.

He was speaking at a ceremony held to inaugurate the Swat twin tube tunnel project at Zulam Kot in Malakand district here on Monday.

The chief minister said that the Swat Expressway would also boost tourism in the region. He said that work on Chakdarra-Mingora road would also begin soon which would ensure better travel facilities to the people. He said work on the mega project would be completed soon as there was no dearth of funds. He said that Rs15 billion had been released to the landowners.

On the occasion, Lt-Col Assad of the Frontier Works Organisation (FWO) briefed the chief minister about the project.

He said that the twin tube tunnels were 1300 metre-long, adding that the expressway was expected to be completed by Dec 2018.

FWO director Lt-Gen Mohammad Afzal, provincial minister Mahmood Khan, CM’s adviser MPA Dr Amjad Ali, Malakand Deputy Commissioner Syed Zafar Ali Shah, civil and military officials were present on the occasion.

Published in Dawn, May 23rd, 2017