The land of Multan in Pakistan in July is under bright sunshine with a fragrant fruit aroma: that is the time when local people welcome a mango harvest. In the garden, Caesar and his family were busy picking the fruits. As he looked at the fresh and plump mangoes being put into the bamboo basket, happiness and a sense of pride was seen on Caesar's face.
Caesar, who is now 35 years old, had studied in China for five years. After graduation, he joined the Peshawar-Karachi Motorway (PKM) project contracted by China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC) as an engineer.
He participated in the construction of the project and has personally benefited from use of the road. Before the PKM project was completed, it was difficult for Caesar's family to quickly transport mangoes grown on their 400 mu (about 27 hectares) of land due to the inefficiency of transportation, and many of the mangoes were left to rot in the garden. Upon opening of the motorway in 2019, travel time between Multan and Sukkur was shortened by seven hours, thanks to which Caesar and his families were able to quickly transport the mangoes to towns and cities in the South for sale. And this has doubled their income. "Farmers like us were very frustrated as mangoes often went rotten during transportation. The motorway plays a key role in improving our lives," Caesar said.
About 335,800 trees were also planted on both sides of the motorway during construction, creating a green area as large as 775 football pitches and bringing vigor to the ancient land.
What's more, free management and technical training courses were also provided based on the project, which cultivated nearly 1,000 engineering management talents and more than 2,000 mechanical operators. "During construction, hiring local workers was a priority for us and we had more than 30,000 local workers during the peak construction period, accounting for 97 percent of the total employee number. The project created a great number of jobs and helped improve local employment," the head of CSCEC's PKM project said.
Located in the central plain with dense population and a flourishing agriculture sector, the PKM project is a South-to-North channel in the central area. It is the largest traffic infrastructure under the framework of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and symbolizes hope and prosperity.
The motorway greatly improves traffic condition in Pakistan and is a new engine driving economic growth in affected areas.
The entire Peshawar-Karachi Motorway is completed. [Photo provided to sasac.gov.cn]
(Executive editor: Li Zhiyong)
