Mehran Highway

Mehran Highway (Sindhi: مِهِراڻ ُ هاءِوي, Urdu: مهران شاہراہ, also known locally as Nawabshah–Kot Lalu–Kumb Road and officially as Highway 31) is a two-lane-wide, bidirectional, single carriageway, provincially maintained highway in Sindh that extends from Khairpur to Nawabshah. The route is generally rural, passing near several smaller towns including Daur and Bandhi in Shaheed Benazir Abad District and Kot Lalu, Pacca Chang, Karoondi, Sui Gas, and Ranipur in Khairpur District. The northern terminus merges with the N-5 National Highway at Ranipur while the southern terminus merges with N-305 National Highway at Zero Point Nawabshah.

Highway S–31
Mehran Highway
مهران شاہراہ
مِهِراڻ ُ هاءِوي
Route information
Maintained by Sindh Highways Department
Length163 km[1] (101 mi)
Major junctions
North end at Khairpur(near Therhi)
South end at Nawabshah
Location
CountryPakistan
Major citiesDaur
Bandhi
Kot Lalu
Thari Mirwah
Ranipur
Highway system

History

Prior to reconstruction of the Mehran Highway, the route was known as Kumb–Nawabshah Road. Reconstruction of the road had been pending for several years due to red tapism, causing accidents and diseases due to incomplete sections of the road where dust rising after passing of vehicles would also destroy crops alongside.[2] The Sindh Highways Department completed reconstruction in June 2015 and was funded by the Asian Development Bank.[3][4]

Deadly Accidents
View of Mehran Highway, also known as the Nawabshah–Kot Lalu–Kumb Road, prior to reconstruction.

The Mehran Highway is a high volume traffic road, as it connects Nawabshah and Khairpur districts and offers a shortcut to and from Sukkur. Many heavy transport vehicles which are traveling from Karachi to Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan, and Azad Jammu & Kashmir and back, often use this two-lane highway to avoid the N-5 National Highway traffic or toll tax. Police personnel are deployed at highway entrance points to stop high tonnage vehicles from entering but they, instead, take bribes and allow the heavy vehicles to proceed. Due to those heavy vehicles and commuter buses and coaches passing through Mehran highway many deadly accidents have taken place in the past few years.[5][6][7][8]

On 20 August 2013, a passenger bus from Uch Sharif (Bahawalpur) overturned in Thari Mirwah, killing 6 passengers.[9]

On 24 August 2014 a passenger bus traveling southbound from Punjab to Karachi collided at with a van traveling northbound to Thari Mirwah at Kot Lalu killing 10 passengers and injuring 11 others. All deceased were residents of Thari Mirwah.[10]

On 25 March 2015, a Karachi-bound coach from Sadiqabad collided head-on with a Punjab-bound truck near Sui-Gas bus stop on the highway, resulting in the death of at least 16 people and injury of 20.[11]

On 6 July 2018, at least 15 people were killed and 25 injured when a Punjab-bound coach from Karachi, a van and a car collided near Daur town.[12]

In another tragic incident, six people including five schoolchildren were crushed to death by a passenger van, on 29 March 2021, near Kot Lalu.[13]

See also

References
  1. Road map sindh.gov.pk
  2. "Mehran Highway pending for 7 years". The Express Tribune News Network. Express Tribune. 3 June 2010. Retrieved 19 September 2015.
  3. AMIN AHMED (16 November 2014). "Asian Bank to help build road network in Sindh". Dawn. Retrieved 19 September 2015.
  4. "PPP's four years of government in Sindh – by Raja Asad". lubpak.com. Retrieved 26 July 2016.
  5. PPI (21 July 2015). "Reckless driving: 8 killed, 178 injured in road accidents". The Express Tribune News Network. The Express Tribune. Retrieved 16 September 2015.
  6. "Tragedy in Khairpur: Reckless driving claims 14 lives - The Express Tribune". tribune.com.pk. 26 March 2015. Retrieved 26 July 2016.
  7. "With two more deaths, Khairpur bus accident toll rises to 16 - The Express Tribune". tribune.com.pk. 26 March 2015. Retrieved 26 July 2016.
  8. "Sindh's deadly highway: Fatal bus on the wrong highway without a permit - The Express Tribune". Archived from the original on 29 March 2015. Retrieved 26 July 2016.
  9. "Six killed in Khairpur road mishap - Pakistan - DAWN.COM". dawn.com. 20 August 2013. Retrieved 26 July 2016.
  10. "Speed kills: Road accident claims 10 lives - The Express Tribune". tribune.com.pk. 24 August 2014. Retrieved 26 July 2016.
  11. "Four women among 16 killed in truck-bus collision on Mehran Highway". www.thenews.com.pk. Retrieved 27 October 2021.
  12. "15 killed in Nawabshah road accident". www.radio.gov.pk. Retrieved 27 October 2021.
  13. "Six die as passenger van runs over schoolchildren". The Nation. 30 March 2021. Retrieved 26 October 2021.
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