RAWALPINDI: The slow pace of work on the construction of roads in different areas of the city is inconveniencing residents, and politicians from opposition parties claim the government is only working on the roads which are frequented by VIPs.

Officials at the Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA), on the other hand, promise construction work will be completed by June 15.

RDA started construction work on four main roads in the current fiscal year of 2015-16 under the Punjab government’s annual development program.

The Punjab government had allocated Rs402million for renovating Airport Road, Rs284 for construction on Adiala Road, Rs168 for Shamsabad Double Road and Rs316 million for the Lahore High Court Road from Chaklala Scheme III to Soan River.

The civic body has managed to complete construction on Airport Road, from Nur Khan Airbase to Karal Chowk, and the remaining roads will take another month to complete, according to RDA officials.

A resident of Chaklala Scheme III extension, Mohammad Shafique said because of a lack of planning, heavy traffic had been diverted to residential colonies.

He suggested a night shift be added to the construction work in order to complete the renovation of the roads connecting residential areas with the main roads. He added that the government was only focusing on completing VIP routes.

Ammar Chaudhry, who lives near Adiala Road, said commuting to work through the road is a chore and that most people left for work an hour earlier in order to avoid traffic jams.

Water lines have been broken due to the construction of roads and water tankers are not available in the area, he said. Many areas have been without water for five days and the Water and Sanitation Agency is blaming the construction of roads for the interruption in water supplies, he said.

Roads are being constructed without providing motorists with alternative routes and the Punjab government has given the contract for the work without the fulfilment of terms and conditions, said PTI Punjab North’s former general secretary Zahid Kazmi.

Talking to Dawn, the PTI leader said that the government was constructing roads on which the Punjab chief minister and the prime minister travelled, like Airport Road and was not attending to other roads.

“Pirwadhai, Faizabad, GT Road and Peshawar Road were turned into commercial hubs without approval because the schools, commercial plazas and private bus stands on these roads belong to PML-N local leaders,” he alleged.

PPP City spokesperson Shujaat Haider Naqvi alleged that the government was making money from contracts and that contractors were not following precautionary measures to avoid traffic jams.

“Ambulances, and even funeral processions, find it difficult to pass through because of poorly planned construction work,” he said.

When asked, RDA Director Engineering Akram Soban said the construction of LHC Road and Adiala Road will be completed by June 15.

The renovation of Airport Road and Shamsabad Double Road is complete and RDA only has to install cat eyes and lane markings, he said adding that green areas will be developed along airport road soon.

Work had been slow till recently and had picked up pace the last three months because of the availability of funds.

Published in Dawn, May 11th, 2016