Rs 200 million released for Rashid Expressway, flood channel

Government has decided to immediately release Rs 200 million for constructing the Sheikh Rashid Expressway and Flood Channel as the Planning Commission (PC) has accepted the contractor's major demand of not capping the overall cost of the project, official said on Friday.
This was decided in a high level meeting held here in the PC with Deputy Chairman Engineer Dr Akram Sheikh in the chair. The meeting was exclusively held for reviewing progress on the project. Minister for Railways Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, officials from Army Engineer Corps, Frontier Works Organisation (FWO), National Engineering Services Pakistan (Nespak) and Planning and Development (P&D) Division were also present on the occasion.
By not capping the overall cost, the PC has succumbed to one of the major demand of the FWO, which is contractor of the project. According to the PC-I, the project would cost over Rs 17 billion. The project will be constructed on design and measurement basis instead of turnkey basis. This means that there could be some fluctuations in the overall cost, an official told Business Recorder.
If the contractor estimates that project cost is more than what has been estimated in the PC-I, the government will be in no position to object to contractor's estimates. According to the official privy to the meeting, the P&D was of the view that project overall cost has been estimated on realistic prices. The PC-I was just recently finalised keeping in view the prices of the required materials. Therefore, the overall cost must be capped at the level mentioned in the PC-I. Winter is coming, and the construction activity could become slow especially in northern parts of the country.
However, the FWO was of the view that project would be constructed on Nullah Leh, and the contractor would have to keep many things in mind when the project is executed. The FWO also argued that the project would be constructed not in one season. It would take some time.
According to the official, a formal agreement between Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA), Nespak and FWO would be signed on October 26, after which the construction work on the project would be initiated. The minister for railways called for speedy implementation of the scheme, which he termed beneficial for the general public of Rawalpindi.
The project has been inaugurated by President General Pervez Musharraf even before it was approved by the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec).