MURREE: The reconstruction of Lower Topa-Kohala road may face further delay as the provincial government has refused to approve a fresh financial proposal for it.

According to sources, senior members of the provincial highway department submitted the fresh financial proposal to the planning and development board last week seeking Rs400 million for the widening of the road.

Many roads were constructed across the Punjab during the PML-N’s tenure and there was no need of any road in the remote area, the planning and development board told the highwaydepartment officials, said the sources.

The department would constitute a committee to ascertain the necessity of the road for the hilly area. The committee would visit the project site and decide its fate.

Following a protest by the local people, the government had announced Rs530 million to launch the project.

Later, hype was created by the PTI local leaders and lawmakers about the start of work on the road.

During the previous government, on the direction of the then prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, who was elected MNA from this constituency, the Punjab government had allocated Rs2.1 billion for the construction of the 34 kilometres road from Lower Topa to Kohala.

The contract was awarded to a company which started work on the road. But when the company had dug out the road from Lower Topa to Dewal, the tenure of the PML-N government expired and the release of funds was stopped by the caretaker government.

Later, Punjab Governor Chaudhry Sarwar visited the road and assured the people that the work would be started as soon as possible.

When contacted, Subdivisional Officer of the highway department Chaudhry Mohammad Arif said an amount of Rs500 million had been allocated for the project but the estimated cost was more than that.

A new revised estimate has been submitted to the planning and development department, he added.

He said a survey was being conducted to ascertain the estimated cost of the project. After completion of the formalities, work on the road would be started, he added.

Published in Dawn, January 26th, 2019