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ISLAMABAD, Sept 19: The construction work on the much-awaited Lowari rail tunnel will start this month. This was stated by Federal Minister for Communications Shamim Siddiqui at a ceremony held to award the contract for construction of the tunnel to a Korean company, Sambu, here on Monday.
The project will be completed in three years at a cost of Rs5.4 billion.
National Highway Authority (NHA) Chairman Maj-Gen Farrukh Javed and country director of the Korean company signed the documents.
The minister said the tunnel would be the only road connection between Chitral valley and other parts of the country and would be constructed through the 10,200-foot Lowari Pass between Dir and Mirkhani in Chitral.
The minister said the first feasibility of the tunnel was carried out in 1955 while work on the project was started in 1975 by the Frontier Works Organization (FWO). The project ran into snags and ultimately work was abandoned, he added.
He said work on the project was restarted in 1995 but it could not be continued.
He said President Musharraf realized the strategic importance of the tunnel and ordered its construction in 2002.
Mr Siddiqui said the people of Chitral remained cut off from rest of the country for about five months every year due to closure of the Lowari Pass in winter. After construction of the tunnel, he added, the people of the district would have an all-weather route for the first time.
He said the tourism sector would gain momentum in the area as people would visit the tunnel.
Giving the details of the project, the NHA chairman said the total length of the tunnel would be 8.8 kilometres while it would be 7.15 metres high and 7.55 metres wide.
The project will be completed in two phases. In the first phase the tunnel will be constructed while in the second rail tracks would be laid.
MONITORING SYSTEM: Federal Minister for Communications Shamim Siddiqui directed the NHA to establish an effective monitoring system in order to ensure quality and pace of work on various projects, reports APP news agency.
Presiding over a general managers’ conference of the NHA here on Monday, the minister directed the officials to maintain close liaison with contractors for quality and timely completion of maintenance and construction works.
He said the authority should keep a close vigil on various ongoing projects of the Asian Bank Development in NWFP and Balochistan, and spend the amount in a transparent manner. The minister also said special focus should be given on the recruitment of local people in these projects, adding that it would not only reduce the financial cost but would also be helpful in timely completion of the projects.
He said the ongoing Lyari Expressway should be completed beyond political consideration. He said the vital project was getting delayed due to what he said the indifferent attitude of Karachi administration and unavailability of land by land mafia.
The minister took strong notice of the slow pace of work on the expressway and ordered an inquiry against the contractor.
The conference was also attended by Secretary Communications Tariq Mahmood, Joint Secretary Firdous Alam, NHA chairman besides contractors and consultants.
