ISLAMABAD: The overall infrastructure of the Benazir Bhutto International Airport (BBIA) is in a dilapidated condition and needs immediate overhauling.
The deputed officials of law enforcement departments stationed at the airport, including Customs officials, Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) and Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), are known for their rude behavior and insulting style of probing people, which greatly irritates the travellers.
A traveler named Mohsinullah told Pakistan Today that it was the only airport in the world where travellers have to go through the checking counter four times. The ineffectiveness of the airport security still shines through as news channels frequently air news every now and then where a passenger is offloaded from the airplane by security officials for being found smuggling narcotics, gold, foreign currencies and other contraband.
FIA sources told Pakistan Today a few months ago that four officials, including two lady officials, were found involved in human trafficking at Benazir Bhutto airport, and the FIA Islamabad branch had also registered cases against them.
While talking to this scribe, another traveller Muhammad Ali Rana said that he often used the airport to travel abroad. He said, “When I came back to Pakistan from Canada via China after 10 years, and I was disappointed to see the Customs officials wearing old belts and unclean uniforms. The overall infrastructure was in a dilapidated condition which gave a very bad image of Pakistan to foreigners.”
Narrating his ordeal further, he said that the most embarrassing moment for him was the inability of the officials concerned to converse in English when my foreign friend asked them about some information.
“The departments concerned should divert their attention towards this issue. They should deploy educated persons who could at least speak fluent English to assist foreigners.
Though the new airport would be constructed in the federal capital in 2016 per government promises, Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) had failed to meet the deadline a few times.
Last month, the Parliamentary Affairs Minister Aftab Ahmed Sheikh informed the Senate that the revised PC-1 of the new Islamabad airport would cost around Rs 81 billion and an amount of Rs 75.887 billion had been spent on the project so far.
The airport was also being connected with a network of roads leading to different parts of the city. Work on Metro Bus project was also being carried out to provide best facilities to the commuters, he said.
The construction on a small dam had also been completed to fulfill water requirement of the new airport, and 11 tube wells had also been installed for the purpose of water management. On the other hand, the officials suggested that the new Islamabad airport may face additional delays.
In a meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Cabinet Secretariat at the Parliament House, headed by Senator Talha Mehmood in October this year, the chair had expressed his displeasure over irregularities found in the project and slow construction work on the airport.
Senator Talha said that despite claims from senior officials of the CAA about work done on the airport, he said that according to his information there was still a lot of work to be done on the airport, including on baggage services department.
Talking about the state of the airport’s runways, Talha said that CAA officials had previously claimed that it was ready to support international air traffic. Furthermore, there was no sign of when the third runway for the airport would be ready, he added.
CAA representatives had told the committee that they have not finalised a new date for inaugurating the airport, but it could be in December 2017 or in January 2018.
At this, Senator Talha said that previously officials had announced August 14 as the date for inaugurating the airport and that a delay was also being caused by the National Highway Authority (NHA). The committee also raised questions about the cost of the Metro Bus extension work which would link the airport to the capital.
During a briefing on the matter, officials said that the extension, from Peshawar Morr to the airport, was around 26 kilometres. The construction of the track had been divided into four parts and each part had been assigned to separate contractors.
The project, which would cost around Rs 15 billion, would see commuting time cut to just 40 minutes.
Moreover, Talha asked the officials concerned why such a small project was costing so much. On this, officials said that compared to the Metro Bus built in Lahore and Multan, this project was comparatively cheaper. CAA Spokesperson Fareeha Shah was not available for comment.
