KARACHI, May 13: The State Minister for Communication, Shahid Jameel, on Saturday visited the Lyari Expressway (LEW) and the Karachi Northern Bypass to review construction work there.
The minister appreciated the progress so far made on both projects.
He said the LEW project was the first of its kind in Pakistan and very challenging, as it involved the relocation and rehabilitation of more than 7.5 million people.
He said it was not easy to convince people to vacate areas they had been living in more than 20 years, adding that he had met the governor of Sindh for removing impediments in the progress of work.
He said that two PCs were prepared; one regarding the NHA and other city government, adding that the latter PC was facing problems.
He hoped that once the NHA got the right of way, the project would be completed within a year.
The minister dispelled the impression that the project would divide the people of Karachi. Rather, he said that it would unite the city’s people.
He said it would promote trade activity in the city in particular and in the country in general.
The NHA Chairman, Maj-Gen Farukh Javed, said that earlier the cost of the project was Rs4.8 billion, which had now been revised to Rs7.7 billion.
He said the delay was caused by the fact that more than 15 churches, 54 mosques and lots of houses were in the pathway of the project.
He further said that the Karachi Northern Bypass had been delayed due the project’s upgrading from two to 10 lanes.
The minister was briefed that about 71 per cent work on the LEW was completed and the remaining work would be completed till November 2006.
The project starts from Mauripur Interchange and ends at Sohrab Goth Interchange, and has 16 flyovers.—PPI
