RECORDER REPORT
ISLAMABAD: The World Bank has agreed in principle to finance Peshawar-Kabul Motorway but the project is being delayed due to non-cooperation from the Afghan side, said National Highway Authority (NHA) Chairman Shahid Ashraf Tarar.
“Pakistan is carrying out the feasibility study with its own resources but the Afghan side is not cooperating,” said the chairman NHA while briefing the National Assembly Standing Committee on Communications which met with Muzammil Qureshi in the chair here Tuesday.
The committee was further informed that the impression of ignoring Balochistan with respect to development works was not correct as the province got the lion’s share in road infrastructure projects.
Tarar said that work on the DI Khan-Zhob Project under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) would be started by the end of current year. The Ministry of Communications has launched most of its projects in Balochistan and all other provinces.
Balochistan will be further connected with other provinces through new projects very soon, said the chairman NHA, adding that the residents of Khuzdar had to travel via Karachi for reaching Sukkur and it was terrible situation for them, but now Khuzdar-Sukkur direct road will be inaugurated very soon. The M-8 had already been completed and now it takes 6 hours to travel over 650km. It was also told to the committee that construction work of Kuchlak Bypass has been started.
About Rs2 billion shortfall/missing from fines collected by National Highway and Motorway Police (NH&MP), the committee was informed that the actual difference in fine imposition and collection from 1997 to June 2016 is Rs 450,240,340 instead of Rs 2.0288 billon, according to available record. It was further stated that the audit took the fine collection amount after deduction of O&M charges i.e. Rs 8,087,275,849 instead of actual fine collection amount, ie, Rs 9,665,845,443 during the period from 1997 to October 2011. The O&M charges to the tune of Rs 1, 578,569,594 were not included in the collection amount. It is further added that the issues regarding reconciliation were there before opening of Joint Bank Account. The total difference of Rs 450, 240,340 is in process of reconciliation with the National Highway Authority (NHA).
The committee recommended for completion of Chakdara-Kalam Road on priority basis because the residents of the areas are facing trouble during travelling.
The committee was informed that Karachi Green Line Project is in progress. The phase-I of Green Line project will be completed by November 2017 and its phase-II by April 2018. If provincial government can purchase buses for the project, it would be operational by November 2017 to facilitate the residents.
The committee directed for continuous coordination with the provincial government so that people of Karachi can avail benefits of these national projects on time. The committee was informed that the climate challenge impacts have been considered in the project. Eight hundred trees have been planted while 18,000 more trees will be planted with regard to control the climate challenge impacts.
The total length of the route from KESC Power House, Surjani Town, to Municipal Park, MA Jinnah Road, is 21.7 kms, a dedicated BRT corridor with 10 kms at-grade and 11.7 kms (10.7 kms + 1 km Board Office Interchange I loop) of elevated sections.
The committee was further briefed that it will have 33 bus stations provided with all necessary facilities including covered escalators, stairs, elevators, modern ticket counters, waiting areas and other passenger amenities.
After completion of the project, Karachi will have its first-ever mass transit being reliable and affordable, while high speed mass transit system will provide timely and convenient service to the commuters having daily ridership of 400,000 passengers.
The project’s detailed engineering design up to Guru Mandir has been completed. The procurement process of contracts from Guru Mandir to Municipal Park is also complete and work is at the stage of commencement. The environmental impact assessment (EIA) stands approved, procurements has been done under transparent procedure strictly following Pakistan Public Procurement Rules, 2004 and that eight procurement packages have been awarded at competitive cost.
The committee was briefed that with the aid of Asian Development Bank, work on the phase–I from Mardan to Swabi of Peshawar-Topi Road will start soon.
The standing committee directed to expand the road which connects Lyari Expressway to M-9, especially, the bridge should be focused in this regard because Al-Asif Square to Sohrab Goth Road is incapable to bear traffic load. The committee was further briefed that the work has been divided into four parts. This road will be completed in 18 months by 2018, with the addition of 22 new bridges.
The meeting was also attended by Federal Minister for Communications Hafiz Abdul Karim and other concerned officials.
