FINANCE Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb now has much to his credit, which is why his promise that the M6 motorway will be completed “at all costs” gives one hope that there may be some progress on this long-awaited project in the coming financial year. “[…] We will ensure the planning ministry is fully informed of the motorway’s importance so that appropriate budgetary provisions are made,” he recently assured parliament while dwelling on the government’s development plans for fiscal 2026. It is a wonder that the M6 motorway, which will link Karachi to Sukkur, still exists only on paper. Considering the size of the port city and its importance to the national economy, Karachi ought to have been the first city to be linked to other urban and industrial centres when the motorways were conceived. Instead, in 2025, road travellers do not have access to a reliable, well-maintained, high-speed motorway that links the country to Pakistan’s main commercial hub, and must use highways in frequent need of repairs.

Meanwhile, almost all the other important urban centres of the country, barring Quetta, have been connected via motorways for many years, which has greatly facilitated travel, trade and transport. Even now, six years from when it was supposed to become operational, it seems the M6 will take another few years to operationalise despite the finance minister’s sincere promises. Mr Aurangzeb revealed the authorities are still exploring funding options for the M6 project, and while international financial institutions have shown an interest in financing the motorway, there is still nothing that seems to have been firmed up. ‘Unsolicited’ proposals for the project, submitted by two firms earlier this year, seem to have been ignored by the authorities, and it seems that no real progress has been made over the past many years that would benefit road travellers. Sindh’s representatives should continue raising the issue forcefully, or the project will keep being pushed back.

Published in Dawn, May 17th, 2025