THATTA: Federal Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal on Thursday directed the authorities to expedite work on the K-IV water supply project and set December 2026 as the new deadline for its completion, saying that the scheme was vital for addressing Karachi’s chronic water shortage.

During a visit to the project site near Thatta, the minister reviewed progress on the long-delayed scheme and said the federal government was committed to ensuring its timely completion.

The K-IV project is designed to supply 260 million gallons per day (MGD) of water to Karachi.

Officials briefed the minister that the project’s cost had escalated from the original estimate of Rs120 billion to Rs170 billion due to revisions and inflation.

Mr Iqbal said the federal government would bear the entire cost of the revised project.

“Karachi is the economic engine of Pakistan and meeting its essential needs is a priority of the federal government,” he said, adding that he was visiting the site on the directives of the prime minister.

Expressing satisfaction over the pace of work carried out by the Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda), the minister stressed the need to accelerate construction activities to meet the revised deadline.

Under the project framework, Wapda is responsible for bulk water transmission and canal lining to minimise water losses while the Sindh government will handle the internal distribution network within Karachi.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr Iqbal also referred to other major infrastructure initiatives. He said an agreement had been signed with the Islamic Development Bank for financing the Karachi-Hyderabad-Sukkur Motorway project, and the foundation stone would be laid soon.

He added that a committee headed by the prime minister was reviewing the net metering policy and would submit its recommendations shortly.

Referring to the Thar coal initiative, the minister described it as a successful example of cooperation between the federal and provincial governments.

Provincial Minister Nasir Hussain Shah and senior officials were also present during the visit.

Published in Dawn, February 13th, 2026