[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text dp_text_size=”size-4″]The Senate Standing Committee on Communication has expressed serious concerns about the incomplete ongoing road projects, noting that each project only receives 10 to 15% of funds annually, causing delays in completion, price increases, and disputes between the National Highway Authority (NHA) and contractors.
The committee convened on Tuesday, chaired by Senator Prince Ahmed Umer Ahmedzai, and thoroughly assessed the status of numerous ongoing and completed projects, the overall money generated by the NHA, and other administrative problems.
The committee members expressed reservations about the minister’s recurrent absence from meetings, claiming that the minister seemed uninterested in resolving difficulties faced by the general population.
The committee also received updates on the progress, repair, and renewal of work on projects harmed by last year’s terrible floods, and enquired about flood readiness for this year.
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The committee was informed that the NHA, in collaboration with NESPAK, is developing a completely new structure and alignment of flood-affected bridges. The committee was informed that NESPAK will provide the structural design and that NHA will present to the committee on the realignment of the Pinjra Bridge at the next meeting.
The project will take around two years to complete. To handle floods in the country, the committee was informed that a comprehensive hydrological analysis of the NHA network is required. The NHA was also briefed on the restoration of flood-damaged roadways.
The committee was also briefed on the details of money collected by NHA since January 2019, including toll tax and other sources, as well as the annual, monthly, and total utilisation.
It was revealed that toll income (National Highways & Motorways) generated a total of Rs. 135.488 billion from January 2019 to June 2023. Motorways earned Rs. 44.376 billion and National Highways earned Rs. 91.111 billion of the total earnings. The committee was informed that Rs. 112.187 billion were spent on upkeep.
The committee expressed worry about the incomplete ongoing projects while receiving a briefing on the details of ongoing projects inaugurated by the prime minister since January 1, 2023, till date.
The committee determined that the delay costs the country a significant amount of money because the NHA must pay the contractor’s liability for increased rates. In the next meeting, the committee chairman requested details on all delayed projects over the last five years, as well as the cost of liability for each project paid to the contractor.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
