ISLAMABAD: The National Highway Authority (NHA) gave on Wednesday a go-ahead to the construction of Karachi-Lahore Motorway.

A meeting of the NHA’s executive board, which gave the approval, was informed that the government had been working on a plan to put in place a network of highways in the country in order to boost economic activities.

The Karachi-Lahore Motorway has been kept on the priority list and construction work on the project would start soon, the meeting was informed.

NHA chairman Shahid Ashraf Tarrar, who presided over the meeting, said that all-out efforts should be made to increase the NHA’s revenue through toll plazas. He said contracts for all 95 toll plazas would now be awarded through open bidding on fiscal-year basis.

The NHA toll plazas under the control of National Logistics Cell would be retrieved.

The meeting was informed that revenue from NHA toll plazas in the year 2012-13 was Rs13.5 billion and it’s estimated to be Rs17.4bn in ye RAWALPINDI: Ambassador of Afghanistan Janan Mosazal callled on Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif at Genaral ar 2014-15.

The NHA is also planning to set up a “Road Development Fund,” Mr Tarrar said.

“Road projects launched on a Build Operate Transfer basis have proved to be very productive as these projects, after a specific period after completion, have been handed over to the NHA along with their assets,” Mr Tarrar told the meeting.

Inspector General of Motorway Police Zulfiqar Ahmad Cheema, Joint Secretary of Budget (finance division) Waqar Ahmad, officials of communications ministry, National Engineering Services of Pakistan (Nespak) and officials of the authority attended the meeting.

Published in Dawn, June 19th, 2014