RAWALPINDI, March 16: Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif on Saturday inaugurated the Pirwadhai flyover and underpass but the flyover was not opened to traffic as 20 per cent work on the project is yet to be completed.

According to the communication and works (C&W) department officials, the construction of the service roads would take two more months. They said the department and the National Logistics Cell (NLC) could not complete the carpeting, construction of the flyover railing and surface rendering for connecting the carriageway with the I. J. Principal Road.

When contacted, Jamshaid Khan of the C&W department said the flyover would be opened in two or three days.

He said samples of materials used in the construction of the flyover had been sent for laboratory test at the Taxila Engineering University and after receiving the report, the flyover would be opened for traffic.

Motorists at Peshawar Road continued facing problems due to the slow pace of work. Some of them said the chief minister inaugurated the project to get his name printed on the plaque.

Mohammad Tanveer, a resident of Siham, said he had to go to Islamabad through Westridge and the I.J. Principal Road instead of Peshawar Road, which wasted his two hours.

He said piles of mud on the road also made it difficult for the motorist to use the slip roads along the flyover.

Naimatullah, a resident of Naseerabad, said he had to go to Saddar after taking a long alternative route. The contractors are working slowly which created problems for motorists, he added.

He said the government had shifted all the bus terminals for Peshawar and Attock to Pirwadhai which created problems for the local traders and transporters.

Inaugurating the flyover, the chief minister lauded the role of the army and its generals, including Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Pervaiz Kayani, Lt-General Sajjad Ghani and officials of the NLC for extending cooperation to the government in the execution of the flyover project.

The chief minister also announced cash prize of one million rupees for the labourers who worked on the project round-the-clock.

The amount will be distributed among the labourers by a committee headed by the commissioner Rawalpindi.

The chief minister directed the commissioner to make cleanliness arrangements in Rawalpindi on the pattern of Lahore’s solid waste management.

He said the debris around the roads should be removed within the next 48 hours. If required, machinery should be brought from Lahore, he added.

Senator Pervaiz Rashid, Senator Mushahidullah Khan, Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah, MNAs Malik Abrar and Hanif Abbasi were also present.