Communications Minister Murad Saeed has said that prime importance be attached for timely completion of maintenance schemes of national highways throughout the country and undertaking of concrete steps to this effect is dire need of present time. The incumbent government is determined to provide safe and sound travelling to road users on national highways and motorways in the country. He was addressing a high-level meeting regarding maintenance of roads all over the country participated by Federal Secretary Communications Zafar Hassan, Chairman National Highway Authority (NHA) Capt (R) Muhammad Khurram Agha and senior officers from the Ministry of Communications and the National Highway Authority. Saeed added that in near future, about 70 per cent of the NHA network will be maintained and restored. “Quality and timely completion of road building and maintenance schemes stand among our priorities, and that to this effect all damaged roads will be maintained on a priority basis,” he said, elaborating that a comprehensive plan has been finalised for that purpose. NHA’s General Managers Muhammad Naseem Khattak and Col (R) Zulfiqar Ali Janjua gave a detailed briefing regarding maintenance schemes of the NHA in all four provinces and Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan regions. In the briefing, it was told that under the annual maintenance plan 2017-18, a total of 913 km roads segments were maintained in 2018-19. According to details, 456 Kms roads in Punjab province, 98 km roads in Balochistan, 211 km roads in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit Baltistan, and 132 km long roads in Sindh province were improved. Likewise, under 2018-19 the annual maintenance plan, 108 km long road segments were improved in Punjab, whereas 91 km long roads in Balochistan, 42 km roads in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit-Baltistan and 40 km long roads in Sindh province were improved. It was further told in the briefing that under the annual maintenance plan 2019-20, 83 schemes having a total length of 749 km road segments will be improved throughout the country. Likewise, 132 schemes having a total length of 1,344 road segments will be improved under the annual maintenance plan 2020-21. It was further told in the briefing that by December this year, the construction work of 4,540 km roads sections will be completed.