RAWALPINDI: After an interruption of two weeks, work on the metro bus project resumed on Tuesday as the contractors started laying girders on the pillars of the route from Faizabad to Shamsabad.

However, officials of the Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) expressed the fear that the deadline of January would not be met and the project would be completed in March instead.

“The work has started formally at some parts but there is still a problem of getting the construction material as the roads connecting the city with the neighbouring towns are partially closed,” said a senior RDA official.

He told Dawn that the work on laying the girders on the pillars had started but the contractors complained about the shortage of cement.

“The girders are being constructed near Islamabad Expressway, close to Lok Virsa, and it is a problem to transport the cemented girders to Murree Road since the Islamabad administration has dug trenches on the roads to hinder the protesters,” he said.

The official said the contractors had informed the RDA that it would take more than a month to speed up the work if the construction material was made available in the next few days. He also feared that the project would most likely be completed in March.

Commissioner Rawalpindi Zahid Saeed, who is also the project director, admitted that there was a problem about transporting the construction material. He said the contractors were also worried about the shortage of cement and other materials.

However, he said the RDA had managed to start the work at some sites in Rawalpindi while the work at the Islamabad sections has virtually stopped due to the ongoing sit-ins.

“Yes, the deadline is difficult to meet in this scenario as the work on package-3 – from Centaurus to Pakistan Secretariat – will start after the end of the sit-ins,” he said.

The commissioner added that the work on the underpass along the parade lane cannot start till the clearance of the site. He said rainwater had accumulated in various dug-up portions and it would take some days to drain it out.

Mr Saeed said that the work on the Peshawar Mor intersection required more time to complete. “The contractor has to dig more area for the underpass at Peshawar Mor and construct pillars for the roads,” he said.

The project director said the RDA was pressing the contractors to start the work, hoping that they would speed up the work after the resolution of the political crisis in the capital city. He said the RDA would make it sure that the project was completed on time at least in the Rawalpindi section.

Published in Dawn, August 27th , 2014