ISLAMABAD: The government on Thursday decided to extend the Murree Expressway by 70 kilometres to Muzaffarabad during a National Highway Authority (NHA) meeting chaired by Communications Minister Abdul Aleem Khan.

Work on the road has been ongoing under Khan’s tenure, including when he visited the expressway last November to review beautification, rehabilitation and improvement works along the route.

According to the communications ministry, Khan presided over the meeting to review the authority’s financial close and map out strategic infrastructure priorities for the current fiscal year.

In a decision aimed at boosting regional connectivity, the minister announced a 70km extension of the Murree Expressway (N-75) to Muzaffarabad.

The expansion will effectively connect Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) to Pakistan’s main motorway and expressway network, providing residents with a modern, high-speed and safer travel facility.

The minister said the extension marked the beginning of a modern era of safe transit for the people of AJK, adding that they deserved the same “high-calibre” motorway facilities available across the rest of the country.

To ensure maximum efficiency across the board, he issued directives to the NHA leadership to prioritise the completion of ongoing infrastructure projects over launching new ones.

He said that during the current fiscal year, the NHA must focus its resources on completing 25 priority projects before shifting attention to new initiatives.

Among these, Khan emphasised the completion of the M-8 Motorway, directing that the Hoshab–Awaran Road and the Awaran–Nal project be fast-tracked.

He said these southwestern corridors were important for expanding trade with neighbouring Iran as well as for unlocking the tourism potential of the region.

Reviewing the NHA’s long-term financial health, Khan also outlined a bold vision to transform the authority to ensure self-reliance. He said the NHA will be restructured to generate up to Rs400 billion annually from its own internal revenue streams, rather than relying on federal government funding.

The meeting concluded after detailed briefings by the Secretary for Communications and the chairman of the NHA on the organisation’s fiscal closeout and strategic operational roadmap.

The road has witnessed several accidents, including one earlier this month in which at least 10 people were killed and 13 others injured when a van caught fire after falling into a nullah while taking a turn, the National Highways and Motorway Police (NHMP) said.