Pakistani roads better than Indian thoroughfares: WSJ

NEW YORK - Despite all its problems, roads in Pakistan are better than those in India, according to The Wall Street Journal. Pakistans 367-kilometer-long M2 motorway between Lahore and Islamabad strikes a visitor as being streets ahead of Indias decrepit inter-state roads even if roads minister Kamal Nath is on a binge of fund-raising to try to improve Indias highways, the business and financial newspaper said in a report from New Delhi. For one, theres a disciplined motorway police that patrol Pakistans highways and dont take bribes. If you go above 120-kilometer an hour, and are caught on camera, a fine awaits you at the tollgate. Non-payment means you cant get out. The M2 motorway passes through the densely populated Punjab countryside but there are no cows, rickshaws or motorbikes coming at traffic on the wrong side of the road which is a common experience in India, the report said. The M2 road was built in the late 1990s by a South Korean firm Daewoo, whose name is still emblazoned on the modern service stations that line the route. Sunita Kohli, a New Delhi-based interior designer who recently did work on a boutique hotel in Lahore, was quoted as saying she was impressed with the road compared to similar developments in India. We really lag behind on infrastructure, she said. Now were trying to make up for lost time. Thats not to say Pakistan doesnt face its own infrastructure challenges, the Journal noted. Its most pressing need is to build more power plants and stop people from stealing electricity to avoid hours of blackouts across the country. And Pakistan 's motorways - at just over 600-kilometer in combine length - are only a small fraction of the total road network, much of which is old, it said. India still slightly edges out Pakistan in the United Nations Human Development Index (HDI), which measures per capita GDP, literacy, life expectancy and other development criteria. (Pakistan ranks 138 on the HDI, while India, which claims to be a superpower, is placed at 134 among 182 countries). Until a couple of years ago, Pakistans economy was booming and there was plenty of public and private money for infrastructure spending. Now, foreign direct investment has dried up and the government, running a large deficit, has had to turn to the IMF for more than $11 billion in loans, the report said. But first-time visitors to Pakistan, many expecting a failed state, are surprised by some of the modern infrastructure, it said. Apart from the roads, Pakistans broadband and wireless roaming speeds also compare favourably with India. Doing business in Pakistan is easier than in India and China, according to the World Bank. With regular Taliban suicide bombings, though, Pakistan is unable to capitalise on these positives and continues to generate only negative headlines, the Journal said.