'Tendering of PWD underpass, Korang bridge, fish-belly in two months'

The tendering for construction of PWD underpass, widening of Korang Bridge and converting Khokar Hotel U-Turn into fish-belly at Islamabad Expressway would be conducted within the next few months, Chairman National Assembly Standing Committee on Interior Raja Khurram Shahzad Nawaz said while talking to APP, over Rs450 million would be spent on these projects he added.

The inter-provincial traffic congestion at the expressway would be reduced significantly with these measures.

Last year, the Capital Developed Authority (CDA) had asked the government for Rs10 billion to widen the expressway from Koral to G.T. Road but the government had only allocated Rs450 million in the 2019-20 budget.

As per law a society having over 1,000 Kanal of land is bound to construct service areas along main highways, he said adding that the surrounding housing societies should construct the service areas along with the expressway in their respective jurisdictions to ease traffic congestion.

Responding to a question regarding stoppage of the construction at Khokar Hotel U-Turn, he said, CBR society had started the construction work on converting the

U-Turn into fish-belly, but CDA stopped the work however; the construction work at the U-Turn will be resumed soon.

The rupees six billion budget of Islamabad was being spent in 200 schools of federal capital while 600 schools situated in rural areas lack basic facilities.

Criticising Mayor Islamabad Sheikh Ansar Aziz, he said Islamabad Metropolitan Corporation has been made ineffective.

A mega centre of National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) would be set up at Tarlai area.

Rs200 billion water supply project from Ghazi Brotha to Islamabad will be executed soon.

He said tendering of Rs350 million uplift projects in his constituency has already been advertised. He started construction work on Burma Bridge. He even launched development projects near the house of Dr Tariq Fazal Chaudhry, his opponent and former MNA and federal minister. Several up gradation projects of electricity, gas infrastructure in the constituency has already been continuing.

Islamabad has the special status and its aboriginal inhabitants had been deprived from their constitutional rights especially in government jobs in education and health sector.

Government jobs from grade 1 to 15 was the right of the natives of Islamabad but they were being deprived from their basic rights.

About the performance of National Assembly Standing Committee on Interior, he said the committee was performing its duties of keeping political differences aside. The committee has already passed Islamabad Rent Control Act 2019, Islamabad Food Authority Bill and couple of other bills which will be tabled in the National Assembly.

A fraud of Rs7.5 billion was committed by the housing society supposed to provide plots to the employees of National Assembly whereas the allottees paid Rs430.70 million for getting plots in the society. The fraud case will be sent to FIA for probe. Billion of rupees looted on fake promise of giving plots to people would be recovered from the fraudsters.