HARIPUR: Cracks have appeared in the newly-built Shah Maqsood-Kohala Road at several places after the recent monsoon rains raising questions about the quality of construction.

The road connects Haripur district with Islamabad Capital Territory via Kohala and Makhniyal meandering through tourist places.

The project was executed during the last PTI government amid claims of transparent award of the contract and strict monitoring of work.

Farid Khan of Ajmairi village told Dawn that the residents waited for years for a road to be built along modern lines hoping not only would it benefit several thickly-populated remote villages but it would also promote tourism in the area.

Official promises early work on damaged portions

He said the project’s successful execution led to an increase in the number of tourists travelling through those villages but the first spell of monsoon rains in July exposed flawed work and the government’s poor project monitoring mechanism.

Residents claimed that when they highlighted the issue, the KP Highway Authority asked the contractor to reconstruct the damaged parts of the road.

They said the contractor removed the upper layer of the road measuring a furlong near Ajmairi area of the Jabri village council last month and dumped construction material at the site but had yet to do the work troubling motorists.

The residents also complained that the frequent rock falling and landslides in the rainy weather caused congestion on the road.

“Authorities have yet not developed a road clearing mechanism. Rocks and stones piled up on the roadside is undeniable evidence to it,” said villager Shamraiz Khan.

When contacted, KPHA Haripur assistant director Faheem Khan confirmed cracks in the road and said the contractor had dug up those portions for reconstruction. He blamed bad weather for the issue.

“Though we haven’t taken over the road, it is a fact that the land beneath that portion of the road got burst and developed cracks due to climatic impact,” he insisted.

The official said the contractor was bound by the agreement to remove cracks, so the reconstruction or repairs won’t cost the government anything.

He also said the contractor had been asked to make inventory, remove landslides and build retention walls wherever needed.

“Reconstruction will be completed in a few days,” he said.

During the last PTI government in June 2021, the then chief minister, Mahmood Khan, performed the groundbreaking of the 33.4km road project.

The road was approved under the Annual Development Programme 2020-21 and was built by the end of last year. However, it has yet to be handed over to the KPHA for maintenance.

The construction of a toll plaza in Kohala Bala village is part of the project. The provincial government will start toll collection after the completion of work on the road and its formal handover to the KPHA.

Published in Dawn, September 16th, 2023