Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Thursday performed groundbreaking of a multi-million rupee Tanawal gas pipeline project in Mansehra, which has already been inaugurated three times before over the last 26 years with zero work on the ground.
The 12-inch gas pipeline has to be laid from Abbottabad to Mansehra to supply gas to Pakhal, Oghi, Balakot and Shinkiari.
The government has allocated Rs 700 million for the project, which was first announced by Nawaz Sharif during his first government in 1990. The same project was re-launched in 1997, when the PML-N formed the government for the second time.
However, a spokesman of Sui Northern Gas Pipeline Limited (SNGPL) Thursday clarified that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had inaugurated the construction of three new Sui gas supply lines in Hazara Division for the first time.
The spokesman said that the construction of a new 12-inch diameter pipeline from Abbottabad to Mansehra, 10-inch line from Mansehra to Uggi and six-inch line from Mansehra to Shankiari and Baffa had never been inaugurated before. He said budget for the project had been approved and procurement of materials had started.
In 2010, the PPP government announced work on the project for the third time.
“Once I lay the foundation of any project, there is no stopping till its completion,” PM Sharif boasted while addressing a mammoth gathering in Mansehra, the native district of PM’s son-in-law Captain (r) Safdar.
Reacting to the PM’s announcement, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Pervez Khattak said that the Mansehra visit was aimed at diverting attention from the Panama leaks.
“This project has been announced for the third time by Nawaz Sharif himself, but there is zero work on the ground,” he said.
The people of Mansehra cannot be fooled by the prime minister’s false announcements, he added.
Awami Muslim League (AML) head Sheikh Rashid said the government was trying to deceive the people by announcing development projects.
“May will be the month of change in politics. The government will not be able to survive the wrath of the public,” he said.
Spokesman for PTI Chairman Imran Khan Naeemul Haq lamented that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was used to announcing development projects, which never materialised.
