Sindh Objects to Punjab Motorway Priority as Hyderabad-Sukkur M-6 Remains Delayed
KARACHI, PAKISTAN — WEB DESK: The Sindh government has raised objections over what it describes as the federal government’s decision to advance another major motorway project in Punjab while construction on the long-delayed Hyderabad-Sukkur Motorway, or M-6, has yet to make comparable progress.
Sindh Planning and Development Minister Jam Khan Shoro raised the issue during a meeting of the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, according to Pakistani media reports.
Shoro argued that the Hyderabad-Sukkur motorway should be given priority because it is an older and strategically important project linking the remaining gap in Pakistan’s north-south motorway network.
He accused the federal government of repeatedly failing to honour commitments made to Sindh regarding the project.
According to the provincial minister, successive governments and prime ministers have made assurances about M-6, yet the project has continued to face delays.
Shoro questioned why a large motorway scheme located in Punjab was being advanced while work on the Sindh section remained pending.
M-6 Is Pakistan’s Missing North-South Motorway Link
The Hyderabad-Sukkur Motorway is designed to complete the motorway connection between Karachi and the rest of Pakistan’s existing motorway network.
Official federal planning documents describe the revised M-6 project as a 306-kilometre, six-lane divided and fenced motorway between Hyderabad and Sukkur. Earlier project documents frequently listed the route at approximately 296 kilometres, reflecting previous alignments and planning estimates.
The motorway would connect the operational Karachi-Hyderabad M-9 with the Sukkur-Multan M-5, completing a major missing section of the Karachi-Lahore motorway corridor.
The federal government has already approved a revised project structure, while financing and procurement have been pursued through multiple arrangements involving international lenders and public-private partnership mechanisms.
In August, a National Assembly committee was told that procedural scrutiny and requirements imposed by international financing partners were among the main causes of delays. The National Highway Authority said progress had nevertheless been made and that the project would proceed under its implementation schedule.
Sindh Questions Punjab Motorway Priority
The Punjab project at the centre of the broader financing debate is the Lahore-Sahiwal-Bahawalnagar Motorway, a roughly 295-kilometre scheme.
Federal planning documents show that the motorway was originally approved at about Rs263.8 billion, while a later revised PC-I raised its estimated cost substantially. The project runs entirely within Punjab.
A parliamentary committee earlier this year also questioned plans to finance the project through the federal development budget because it lies entirely within one province. Dawn reported in April that the revised cost had climbed to around Rs465 billion and that lawmakers had raised concerns over both financing and project feasibility.
That dispute provides context for Sindh’s latest objections.
Shoro told the ECNEC meeting that Sindh residents had repeatedly been given assurances over M-6 but had yet to see construction progress consistent with those commitments.
He described the Hyderabad-Sukkur route as one of Sindh’s most important infrastructure priorities and argued that it should move forward before additional large motorway schemes receive federal preference.
