After PTI chief’s ouster from power, new communications minister Maulana Asad Mehmood diverted funds worth billions towards his hometown leaving rest of projects incomplete
ISLAMABAD - The political vendetta is swallowing development projects of public importance as the National Highway Authority is moving at a snail’s pace on rehabilitation and strengthening of Balkasar to Mianwali and Mianwali to Muzaffargarh Road project.
The project was launched on the personal intervention of former premier Imran Khan, who wished to provide hassle-free road access to his hometown Mianwali, however, just after the inauguration of said project, his government was toppled. The total length of the road is 415km - 129km from Balkasar to Mianwali and 286km from Mianwali to Muzaffargarh. The roads were controlled by the Provincial Highway Department Punjab but the same were federalized in 2020 and put under the control of NHA. Initially to fulfill the desire of the now imprisoned former premier, the roads were placed for dualisation under Public Private Partnership mode with the funding of the private sector. A consultant was engaged to conduct a feasibility study, who declared these roads unviable to be completed with the investment of the private sector.
However, as Imran Khan wanted to uplift this route, the government had directed NHA to at least rehabilitate the existing single carriageway to facilitate the masses and for that purpose a project of Rs13.8 billion was prepared out of which Rs12.4 billion was promised by the federal government while Rs1.38 billion was decided to be contributed by NHA through its road maintenance account. NHA as per its undocumented policy of ‘pleasing the bosses’ had divided 415 km road stretch into 10 packages of almost 40 km each for its timely completion and given the contracts to different contractors, which were successfully mobilized on ground as well.
Former prime minister Imran Khan had inaugurated the said road project in December 2021 but his government could not last too long and he was ousted in April 2022—leaving millions of people settled alongside this important road network into misery and uncounted hardships. After his departure, in successive government of Shehbaz Sharif, the ministry of communications was given to Maulana Asad Mehmood, who diverted funds of billions towards his hometown Dera Ismael Khan and his constituency as well but this political maneuvering of funds left rest of the projects uncompleted. Saleem Akhtar—a regular traveler of this road from Islamabad to his native town in district Talagang shared that the situation is quite pathetic as NHA uprooted the whole stretch of road even where once some carpeted portion exists and left halfway without completion. Few weeks ago, villagers at Dahrabi also protested over the situation and promised by the authorities that the work on site would be started soon but it was no use as well. Now after passing two years not even the sub base could be laid in totality. When contacted, the Director Public Relations NHA Sohail Aftab informed that the work on 165km stretch out of total 415km is fully completed while 246km long portion is being asphalted. He termed insufficient funds as a core reason behind the delays and informed that NHA has demanded around 3.3 billion for this quarter. “The project has not received the allocated amount of 1.25 billion against the liabilities of 2.7 billion”, he maintained, adding; “the revised date of completion is December 2023 but it could only be achieved if required funds would be made available by the government.
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