KOHAT: The social and political circles have demanded an inquiry into what they termed substandard construction of Kohat-Hangu bypass road up to Thall.

The road project had been completed with a cost of Rs700 million which started eroding just after eight months of its construction.

Asked for his comments, the project director said that the contractor had repaired the road by spending Rs1.3 million from his own pocket, but the road again started eroding.

The official said that long overloaded trucks carrying goods from Karachi to Afghanistan via Kohat and Parachinar were responsible for the damage done to the road.

Answering a question, he said that despite his repeated demands the weigh machine had not been installed on the road to check heavily loaded vehicles.

Commuters said that the whole road had turned into a bumpy and dusty track. They alleged that intentions of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Highway Authority were not right from the beginning when it brought an overseer from Orakzai Agency and appointed him as project director.

BHU SOUGHT: Local councillors have demanded of the government to establish a basic health unit and a post office in Kot town here.

Representing councillors from the town, general councillor Yameen Khan said in a statement that their town was still without basic facilities and the residents had to travel to Kohat for treatment and posting mails.

The councillors appealed to the provincial government to treat all towns and districts equally and spend the funds judiciously.

They pointed out that the Kot-Bilitang road was in a dilapidated condition and urged the government to release funds for the project on urgent basis.

The statement said that they had discussed the town’s problems at a meeting which was also attended by Ishfaq Bilal Orakzai, Mattali Khan and Wahid Khan.

They criticised the local MPs for ignoring development of their town.

Published in Dawn, January 8th, 2017