National Assembly Refers Punjab Motorway Funding Dispute to Committee After Minister Rejects Diversion Claim

The planning ministry says only an 18.5-kilometre segment falls under the federal programme, with the rest to be financed by the province or through public–private partnerships.

Overview

PPP lawmakers alleged that roughly Rs465–467 billion were being redirected from Sukkur–Hyderabad schemes and that a provincial motorway was being pushed into the federal PSDP.
Minister of State for Planning Chaudhry Armaghan Subhani told the House that not a single rupee from ongoing PSDP projects had been shifted to the Lahore–Bahawalnagar/Bahawalpur motorway.
The CDWP reviewed the scheme, recommended only the 18.5-kilometre Lahore Ring Road section for ECNEC consideration, and asked for feasibility and viability studies for the remaining stretch.
Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq requested detailed reports from the planning and communications ministries and sent the matter to the National Assembly Standing Committee on Planning for scrutiny.
The government reiterated that the Sukkur–Hyderabad motorway remains a priority with financing from AIIB, IsDB and PPP modes, while PPP leaders voiced concerns about IMF conditions and inter-provincial equity.