ISLAMABAD: National Assembly Standing Committee on Communications expressed its displeasure on the National Highway Authority (NHA) for the delay in projects, showing negligence, and leaving the responsibilities on the private contractors without supervision.
The committee that met with Muhammad Abdul Ghafar Wattoo in the chair here at Parliament House on Wednesday expressed also dismay on the absence of Member Punjab, who was supposed to brief the committee on the mis-procurement conducted by NHA while awarding of the Lodhran-Multan section of National Highway N-5.
The committee noted that Member Punjab remained absent and delayed an important briefing on the project of a hundred million rupees. The committee said that unusual delays in the project rise the prices of the projects and cause inconvenience to the road users.
NHA was asked to answer about the open gutters on the road of Hyderabad-Karachi which could become the reason for traffic road crashes and cause tire bursts.
Responding to the query, NHA officials informed that to avoid stealing of sewerage coverings, the flaps have been welded and in addition to that, a demand has been sent to the Frontier Works Organization (FWO) for required coverings.
The committee directed the NHA to facilitate the public during the upcoming Urs of Hazrat Lal Shahbaz Qalandar in Sehwan Sharif. NHA was also directed to deploy essential staff to avoid traffic congestion and road accidents during the event.
In addition, NHA was directed to mark the road with safety signs to ensure the security of road users.
The committee was given a detailed briefing on the Gharo Keti Bandargah Road Project in which it was informed that the contractor will be mobilized in one month. The committee was also informed that the contractor went to court which caused delays in the project however, NHA is committed to resolving the issue with the negotiation.
Regarding the issue of encroachment, the committee was informed that when the bypass is constructed various projects of housing societies are started in adjacent areas. The NHA urged the policymakers to draw plans for the elevated bypasses to avoid the issue of encroachment in long term.
The committee inquired from the Pakistan Post regarding the hiring and postings along with the lagging in competition with the private courier services.
The Pakistan Post informed the committee that manpower was not enough to meet the standard and time delivery competition however, to address the said issue, an advertisement for fresh hiring has been floated.
The committee was also informed that the digitization of post offices is in full swing and consumers will soon feel a better change in the services of Pakistan Post.