Ensuring safe highways govt’s priority: Abdul Aleem Khan

LAHORE, Mar 09 (APP):Federal Minister for Communications Abdul Aleem Khan on Monday said that ensuring safe highways and modernising the motorway network were among the government’s top priorities, adding that the National Highways and Motorway Police (NH&MP) had a vital role in maintaining discipline and safety on the country’s roads.

He was addressing the passing-out ceremony of the 12th Basic Recruit Course at the NH&MP Training College in Sheikhupura, where a total of 401 recruits, including 67 women, successfully completed their training.

The minister congratulated the young officers, especially the women recruits, and said the day marked an important milestone in their professional lives. He also paid tribute to the martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the country and said their sacrifices would always be remembered.

Abdul Aleem Khan said that strengthening national institutions required grooming youth in line with modern-day challenges and expressed hope that the newly inducted officers would perform their duties with dedication and commitment to serve the nation.

He said ensuring safe highways remained the core responsibility of the motorway police, adding that the government was taking multiple steps to improve road infrastructure and provide better travel facilities to the public.

The minister said Rescue 1122 centres had been established on motorways while an air ambulance service was also being launched to improve emergency response for accidents and medical emergencies.

Highlighting the performance of the National Highway Authority (NHA), he said the authority had achieved significant financial stability during the past two years. He added that the NHA revenue had increased 63 per cent within one year, rising from Rs 66 billion to Rs 109 billion, and expressed hope that it would reach to Rs 135 billion by June 2026.

The minister said several major highway projects under the Ministry of Communications were nearing completion, adding that projects including the Islamabad-Murree and Karachi-Lyari Expressway had been completed while construction of Karachi-Quetta-Chaman Expressway and Karachi-Hyderabad Motorway was underway. Work on important highways in Gilgit-Baltistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was also in progress, he added.

Aleem said promotion of religious and regional tourism through better road connectivity remained a priority, adding that the Guru Nanak Expressway would provide special travel facilities for Sikh pilgrims.

Minister Abdul Aleem said the government was also prioritising digitalisation of motorways so that vehicles could pass through toll plazas without stopping. He said the use of M-Tag had increased from 25 per cent to 90 per cent in the past year and the government planned to introduce barrier-free toll plazas to avoid long queues.

Inspector General of NH&MP Sultan Ahmed Chaudhry, additional inspectors general, the commandant of the training college, senior NHMP officers and parents of the recruits also attended the ceremony.