The chief minister came from Lahore unannounced to review the pace of work on the project. PHOTO: INP
RAWALPINDI: Officials told Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif on Sunday that the sit-ins of the Pakistan Awami Tehreek and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, along with rains, had delayed the completion of Rawalpindi-Islamabad Metro Bus Project and not the slow pace of work.
The chief minister on Sunday paid a surprised visit to the project site to review the pace of work. Sharif arrived at the Benazir Bhutto International Airport and went straight to the metro bus terminal at Flashman’s Hotel. He took the metro bus to visit the other stations where heaps of rubble dumped along the road and slow pace of work greeted him.
To save their skin, the authorities said the project could not be completed in the stipulated time due to the protests by the above-mentioned parties, though there was no sit-in in Rawalpindi.
They said 98 per cent work had been completed and only the reconstruction of Murree Road and service roads was left.
The chief minister also questioned the rubble dumped on the service roads, which were creating difficulty for motorists and pedestrians.
Sharif also met labourers and enquired about their problems.
Rawalpindi Commissioner Zahid Saeed and former MNA Hanif Abbasi, who is the head of the project, and District Coordination Officer Sajid Zafar Dall accompanied the chief minister on the visit.
After the visit, the CM chaired a meeting at the Punjab House on the project where he directed the authorities to complete the project at the earliest.
He said the provincial government was striving to provide better transport facilities to the public. “Rawalpindi-Islamabad metro bus project will bring about a revolution in transport sector and result in a speedy, economical, comfortable and safe commute,” he said.
He said the government was ensuring quality as well as transparency in the mega development projects it was undertaking, adding that the country’ ranking had improved on the anti-corruption charts.
He stated that a revolutionary change will be introduced in public transport sector with the completion of the project.
Of the total length of the metro corridor, 8.5km falls in Rawalpindi and 13.9km in Islamabad.
According to Nespak, a design consultant of the project, 139,000 passengers will commute daily between the twin cities — 75,000 from Rawalpindi and 64,000 from Islamabad.
Earlier, the question arose about the ownership of the project in Islamabad after the Capital Development Authority (CDA) showed reluctance to sign the project due to high operational costs.
As the length of the metro corridor is longer in Islamabad and the number of passengers lesser, the federal government will have to get less revenue and spend more on expenditures. The operational cost of metro bus stations will be more in Islamabad as it has 14 stations as compared to 10 in Rawalpindi.
Punjab will collect revenue from the sale of tickets for travelling from Saddar to Faizabad and the Centre will get the revenue collected from passengers travelling from Faizabad to Secretariat.
The revenue collected from passengers travelling between the twin cities will be shared equally by the Punjab and federal governments and one way ticket will cost Rs20.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 4th, 2015.
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