ISLAMABAD: The multi-billion Bhara Kahu bypass project was opened for traffic in August this year, but the authorities still have not repaired the Murree Road underneath the flyover, which was badly damaged during the construction of the bypass.

“The dilapidated road, which is also a source of dust, has been causing problems for us, but the authorities concerned, after completing the bypass project, have apparently forgotten about this road,” said Zafeer Khan, a resident of Bhara Kahu.

Farhad Ali, who drives a taxi, said that the bypass project was completed after spending billions of rupees, but no focus was paid to do small repair works, which is raising a question mark on the efficiency of the government departments.

According to initial estimates, the worth of the bypass project was Rs6.5 billion and sources said that in revised estimates, (still under process) the cost of the project may spike.

NHA refuses to repair road, asks CDA to honour its commitment

The bypass project was executed by the Capital Development Authority and the Murree Road belonged to the National Highway Authority (NHA). However, the NHA asserted that the road was damaged during the execution of the CDA project, therefore, its repair was also the responsibility of the CDA.

Last week, the authority in response to a CDA letter asked the civic agency to repair the road as per the commitment it had made with the NHA while getting a no-objection certificate(NOC). “For the bypass project, the CDA got an NOC from us and it was agreed that the CDA would do the repair work on our road (Murree Road beneath the flyover),” said an official of the NHA. He said it was the responsibility of the CDA to honour its commitment. The CDA recently through a letter had requested NHA to carry out the said work, but the highway authority refused.

A few months ago, during a meeting held at the NHA headquarters, the NHA had also asked CDA to repair and overhaul a portion of the said road. Besides the damaged portion of the road, the underpasses of the bypass road are also not connected, as service roads on both sides are yet to be constructed. However, they were not part of the main project.

Sources said that people had been complaining about the dilapidated and bumpy condition of the road, which forced the NHA to call a meeting, chaired by the member engineering and coordination of the NHA and also attended by the CDA director general and other officers.

“We heard that there is an issue of jurisdiction, some say it is the responsibility of the CDA and some say the NHA is supposed to do this work. This is not our business…we want immediate overhauling of this road,” said Bilal Ahmed, a shopkeeper.

The bypass was a pet project of the Shehbaz-led PDM government and was completed by the National Logistic Cell (NLC) within 10 months. This project proved a blessing for motorists as now they can bypass massive traffic jams – a hallmark of the pre-bypass Bhara Kahu.

When contacted, a CDA director said that earlier the CDA was expecting that the NHA would do the said work and for this purpose, a letter was also written, but last week, they refused. “Now, we will discuss this case with our high-ups for a final decision. Meanwhile, we are also trying to get the NHA engaged; let’s see,” he said.

Published in Dawn, December 20th, 2023