DUSHANBE, August 27, Asia-Plus – Traffic via the Anzob pass linking northern Tajikistan to the central part of the country has been suspended because of a planned blast work, carried out on the 154th kilometer of the highway from Dushanbe to Khujand, Asia-Plus has learned at the Ministry of Transport and Communications (MoTC).
The source at a MoTC said that hand-placed explosives had been used to broaden the road. “At present road-builders are clearing this section of the highway of rocks and traffic will be resumed within the next few days,” the source said.
We will recall that Chinese company China Road has won the tender for implementation of the Dushanbe-Khujand-Chanak (Uzbek border town) highway rehabilitation project and Beijing last year offered Tajikistan grants and loans to fund the project. Rehabilitation of the road and construction of a tunnel under the Shahriston pass started last summer. The tunnel is scheduled to be finished by August 2009, while the rehabilitation of the highway from Dushanbe to Chanak will have been completed by August 2008.
A total project cost is estimated at some $296 million, including $281.2 million provided by the Chinese government in a form of a long-term loan. The loan carries a 20-year period and an interest rate of 2 percent per annum. The remaining some $14 million are provided by the government of Tajikistan.
