Federal Minister for Communications and Postal Service Murad Saeed on Monday launched the E-Billing System at the National Highway Authority (NHA) with an aim of good governance and transparency. According to the NHA, the system will ensure speedy processing of bills and transparency and ultimately it will help control corruption, besides saving time by 50 percent.
Federal Secretary Communications Jawwad Rafique Malik, Chairman NHA Captain Sikandar Qayyum (retd), and senior officers from the Ministry of Communications and NHA attended the launching ceremony.
A detailed briefing was given on the working of the e-billing system in which it was told that the contractor will submit bill at NHA E-Billing Portal and consultant will verify/certify the bill. The project authority will exercise laid down check and sanction payment. The Finance Wing will process and accord approval of payment prior to release of payment to beneficiary. Speaking on the occasion, Saeed said that E-Billing system is meant to ensure transparency, eradicate corruption, save cost and time, increase efficiency and effectiveness and improve managerial control, besides facilitating contractors. All highways will be connected to the mobile system. He said that Prime Minister Imran Khan has given the vision for providing good governance and e-governance which on one hand brings transparency and on the other hand plays role in eradication of corruption and malpractices. The E-billing system is part of e-governance programme of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government, which will help save time and eradicate the commission culture, he added.
Pragmatic measures are being taken to control corruption through transparency. He recalled that the good governance may put the country on track towards development.
He informed that the E-Billing system is in-house development through the use of own expertise and resources of the NHA. The system will help redress the complaints and fixing of responsibility in case of any delay. He further said that the system will create atmosphere of mutual confidence between the NHA and contractors. He said that steps are being taken to increase revenue of the NHA through utilisation of its Right of Way (ROW). 'Clean and Green Pakistan' is being started from the next month, the federal minister added. He further said while pursuing accountability, the NHA has recovered Rs 7 billion and generated Rs 43 billion revenue, increasing 51.25 percent revenue this year. "In five years, the NHA will increase its revenue by 100%," he added. He said that the NHA also recovered 448 kanals from land grabbers. The minister said that the Communications Ministry is also contributing to Clean and Green Pakistan drive and will plant millions of saplings from 1st to 14th of August this year.
He further said that the accountability of the plunderers is in progress as Pakistan is drowned in debt due to personal gains and high expenditures of its past rules whereas Prime Minister Imran Khan's visit to the United States is an example of austerity.
The NHA chairman said that the launch of e-billing system is a great achievement. As per vision of the present government, the NHA is also working over e-bidding and making human resource management more active. He said, earlier the NHA had also launched its mobile app to facilitate the commuters on motorways and national highways and that day e-billing system has been launched, which is also a practical advancement towards the good governance.