Kashmir Highway contractor halts work

Cash-strapped Capital Development Authority (CDA) is now facing another blow due to its poor financial condition as the construction work on Kashmir Highway has come to a halt due to the non-payment of dues, Pakistan Today has learnt. Sources in the CDA said that the whole work on the south carriage way (section-1) of Kashmir Highway had come to a standstill for the last four days, as the concerned contractor had refused to work without payment, while the construction company working on north carriageway (section-2) had also slowed down the pace of work due to the delay in payment from the civic body.
In order to provide fast access to the new airport being established in Fateh Jang some 30 km from the capital, the city’s prime agency launched a widening of the highway several months back. Nevertheless, negligence of some concerned officials of the authority has created a number of hurdles in the timely completion of the project. The Rs 3 billion Kashmir Highway or dual carriageway project – under which the road will have five lanes on each side from Golra Mor to Peshawar Mor – is being constructed under the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP).
Officials of the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and the CDA are calling the highway project the “future lifeline” of Islamabad as it will provide new links between the capital and the new airport, and the Lahore and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa motorways. A wholesale market has also been proposed in Sangjani near the new airport for trade activities in the northern region and Punjab. Under the plan, an interchange will be constructed at the Kashmir Highway-GT Road junction to divert traffic to the motorway and GT Road coming from the Kashmir Highway. CDA Project Director Shahzada Rimmal Jamil told Pakistan Today that he was unaware of the situation because he had not been at his office for the last six days due to illness.