ISLAMABAD: Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal on Tuesday said the groundbreaking of the first phase of the Mainline-1 railway track will take place early next year with the financing of the Asian Development Bank.

He was speaking to journalists at the launch of the monthly development update culminating the fiscal year 2026. Talking about the key infrastructure development agenda for the new fiscal year, Mr Iqbal announced that work will begin on the Karachi-Hyderabad M-9 expansion, the Sukkur-Hyderabad-Karachi M-6 Motorway, and the Chaman-Quetta-Karachi Highway.

He said the construction work on the ML-1 railway project under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) will commence from the Rohri-Karachi section. The Asian Development Bank has committed a loan package of around $2 billion. The total cost of the Peshawar-Karachi 1,680km strategic track commonly known as ML-1 is estimated at about $10bn.

Asked if the ADB loan was acquired after China declined to take up the project as it used to be the preferred financier under the CPEC, the minister did not agree, saying all three modes including local, Chinese and multilateral financing were part of the plan under the CPEC framework agreement for ML-1. “It was agreed with China under the CPEC framework that ML-1 would be financed jointly through Chinese, Pakistani and multilateral sources,” he said.

However, given the ongoing annual rollovers of existing Chinese loans, it was considered prudent to start the project with ADB financing in the initial phase and it was done with China’s consent. He said it did not look good to ask for annual rollovers of existing loans while seeking fresh loans as well. Therefore, the Chinese financing option for the project could be tapped in the subsequent phase.

It may be recalled that Pakistan has been requesting the Chinese side to depute technical teams for technical and financial terms and conditions for well over two years after the project size was scaled back for cost cutting.

The minister said the government will also launch the Karakoram High­way-II project to replace the approximately 100-kilometre stretch of the existing highway that will be affected by the construction of the Diamer-Bhasha Dam, ensuring uninterrupted trade connectivity between Pakistan and China.

Responding to a question as to why the government keeps talking about financial constraints even though it allowed the Diamer-Bhasha Dam’s construction contract at 31pc higher than official estimates, the minister said the contract was not finalised or signed by the current government.

Mr Iqbal said the government will work closely with provincial governments to declare the social sector a national development emergency, focusing particularly on child nutrition, healthcare, education and the elimination of Hepatitis C within the next three to four years.

Published in Dawn, July 1st, 2026