CHITRAL: The National Highway Authority has banned the entry of trucks exceeding 30-ton load through the Lowari tunnel.

Lower Chitral deputy commissioner Hassan Abid said the NHA had approached the Upper Dir administration, asking it to impose limit on loads of goods transport on the Lowari Road.

He said as the vehicles passed through the Upper Dir district before entering the tunnel, so its administration was tasked with checking the weight of loaded trucks before their entry to the tunnel.

Mr Abid said during random checking of the loaded trucks near the tunnel the NHA found the trucks having loads of 65 to 70 tons, which exceeded the 28-ton capacity allowed inside the tunnel.

He said the overloaded trucks had also posed grave threat to the makeshift steel bridge in Broze Gol area.

The deputy commissioner said every road and suspension bridge over rivers and streams had a design capacity which should not be exceeded at any cost.

Project director of Lowari tunnel, Rafiq Alam could not be contacted despite repeated calls on his mobile phone.

Published in Dawn, November 30th, 2021