ISLAMABAD, Aug 19: The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has indicated to offer $2 billion to Pakistan to help provide "regional connectivity" into Afghanistan and India through road and railway networks separately.
Official sources told Dawn on Thursday that as a first step a high-level ADB mission was arriving here early next month to hold talks with the senior Pakistani officials for capacity building and rehabilitation of Pakistan Railways.
The objective was not only to rehabilitate Pakistan Railways through its corporatization but also help the organization to get connected with Afghanistan through Chaman and India through its eastern parts.
Sources said that earlier a proposal for such railway link in three countries did not materialize due to financial constraints as well as lack of interest of international donor agencies specially due to prevailing conditions in Afghanistan.
By providing regional connectivity through road and railway, volume of trade, the sources said, was expected to grow tremendously in the region. The idea was not only to provide railway link to the upcoming Gwadar Sea Port but also to extend its reach beyond the Pakistani frontiers through the war-torn Afghanistan.
"Initially, we would request the ADB to help provide railway connectivity with Afghanistan and the Central Asian Republics," a source said. The proposed plan, he said, would not only integrate Afghanistan but would also connect the Central Asian Republics (CAR) with Pakistan Railway network through Afghanistan thus integrating the friendly countries for their benefits.
These republics along with Afghanistan have inherited a situation of being land-locked. Without international trade they cannot achieve development. "Thus by force of circumstances they have to find route to warm waters which can be provided by Pakistan," he said.
The proposed rail connection was expected to open new avenues of development and prosperity for the people of Afghanistan who were considered "remotest" by all standards and provide employment to them.
Linking Pakistan with CAR through Afghanistan has been one of the active topics of interest between Pakistan and Afghanistan and that was why the issue was raised with the ADB recently, which promised to provide all necessary technical and financial assistance for both the road and railway connectivity projects.
The sources said the bank would offer approximately $800 million to India separately to help establish its rail and better road links with Pakistan. The entire area, the sources said, has just opened up and offers immense opportunities in the field of defence, technology and bilateral trade.
Vast railway network (1520 mm gauge) exists in all the Central Asian Republics which in 5 republics (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan) is interconnected/integrated and provide facilities for inter-state movement by rail.
The rail network of these states extends to Afghanistan Border at Kushka in Turkmenistan and Termez in Uzbekistan. There, however, exists no rail network in Afghanistan except for small extension over a length of about 12km from Termez to Herat across river AMU.