14 November 2004	Sunday	01 Shawwal 1425

RAWALPINDI, Nov 13: The 22km-long portion of Rawalpindi-Azad Kashmir Road, starting from Kahuta to Beor Union Council, is in a dilapidated condition, causing inconvenience to the commuters.

The road links Kotli, Sudnoti and Pulandari districts of Azad Kashmir with Rawalpindi via the area of Karot, Gora, Jaglar, Jundi, Moori, Boer, Plaan, Kroya and Juwera of Kahuta district.

It is a carriageway from Rawalpindi to Kahuta, but then become a single-lane from Kahuta to Boer. From there, the road again divides into two lanes up to Azad Kashmir.

A number of commuters told this reporter that the patch between Kahuta and Boer was in a bad shape and despite demands from the affected people the government had failed to convert this patch into a carriageway.

Sajid Mehmood, a commuter, said potholes and absence of crash barriers on either sides of the road had made driving dangerous, particularly in the mountainous areas. Every year numerous accidents occur on this patch of the road.

Some vehicles had veered off the road due to the absence of crash barriers. The problem further aggravates when heavy vehicles like trucks block the road.

Capt (retired) Mohammad Azad, another commuter, said thousands of vehicles plied on this road, but the authorities concerned paid no heed to the problem.

He said since 1970, the government had floated only three tenders for repairing of the road. However, tenders had failed to deliver because the road needed to be doubled.

Besides, he said, the contractors spent years instead of months on the execution of repair work. The last tender was floated by the government a year ago, however, the contractor concerned had yet to complete the work, he added.

The contractor was working at a snail's pace and it seemed that the repair work would take three to four years.

Ghulam Hussain, another commuter, said a number of small bridges through which the road passed were in a dilapidated state.

The commuters have appealed to Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz and President Gen Pervez Musharraf to order the repair and extension of the road as soon as possible.