Will not tolerate delay in economic corridor: Nawaz Sharif

Any delay in implementing the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects will not be tolerated, Paksitani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said on Friday.

"Delay in completion of CPEC projects will not be tolerated," Xinhua quoted a statement from the PM office as saying.

The CPEC, a 3,000 km network of roads, railways and pipelines linking Kashgar in China's Xinjiang Uygur region and Pakistan's Gwadar Port, is a major project of China's "Belt and Road" initiative.

During a meeting with Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on the status of the CPEC projects, Prime Minister Sharif said that the concerned officers and officials who fail to complete related projects timely will not be part of the team.

"The CPEC is the future of Pakistan and its timely completion is top priority of the government," he said.

The prime minister would personally review the pace and progress of the projects through the core team and direct the concerned authorities to update project benchmarks on a monthly and quarterly basis that would be monitored by the prime minister on a weekly basis.

"The CPEC would lead to generation of employment opportunities across the country and would lead to enhancement in trade and poverty reduction," he said.