ISLAMABAD: The management of Quaid-i-Azam University (QAU) has asked the Capital Development Authority (CDA) to honour its commitments made through the Joint Working Group (JWG) formed following the controversy over the Bhara Kahu bypass project.

While the bypass project is near completion as asphalt work has already been started in the disputed portion of the road, the QAU has decided to get its issues resolved by the CDA before completion of the project.

The starting portion of the bypass crosses through QAU’s land.

According to the CDA, 199 kanals of the university falls in the alignment of the project. Against this land, the CDA had offered 225 kanals to the university.

In JWG, the civic agency had also made some other commitments like refurbishing the existing roads in the university.

CDA asked to honour commitments made through Joint Working Group

However, QAU faculty members filed a case in Islamabad High Court (IHC) against the project and got a stay order. However, the court later dismissed the petition.

Meanwhile, issues whose solutions were agreed by the CDA could not be resolved.

QAU officials said the management of the university had now decided to approach the new CDA chairman, Noorul Amin Mengal.

“We have decided to write to the new chairman. We want a meeting with him and other concerned officers to resolve our issues in accordance with the JWG decision, which was later also endorsed by the university syndicate,” said QAU Registrar Dr Raja Qaisar Ahmed.

He said there was still unrest among the QAU faculty and students over the issue of the bypass; therefore, “we want earlier resolutions of all our issues with the CDA to avoid any untoward situation.”

The QAU officials said recently the university management also requested Federal Education Minister Rana Tanveer Hussain to get the issues resolved.

They said the CDA was yet to issue allotment letter of the alternative land.

The civic agency had agreed for construction of a new road stretching 600 metres, providing a dedicated access to QAU from Murree Road.

They said it was also decided that the CDA will widen and re-carpet the existing roads in the university besides resolving the lease issues, demarcation of university’s land and removal of encroachments.

When contacted, the CDA chairman said the QAU was the top-ranked university of the country and all commitments made by the civic agency with its management would be honoured.

“Whatever was agreed before my joining between QAU-CDA, I will implement it in letter and spirit. Soon I will hold a meeting with the QAU team. I will resolve their all legitimate issues and will try to give more than the previous commitments to facilitate our top ranked university,” he said.

The Rs6.5 project being executed by the National Logistics Cell (NLC) was inaugurated by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on September 30.

The CDA started work on it on October 1.

The 5.2-km road has two portions: a road and a flyover. The four-km road will be completed by the end of February while the flyover could be ready by the end of March or in April, said the CDA officials.

Published in Dawn, January 30th, 2023