According to the Senate Standing Committee on Communications, the National Highway Authority (NHA) ought not to become complicit in the growth of private companies. This situation has raised serious concerns about allowing housing societies to have interchanges on the road.
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A charge of Rs. 5 million and Rs. 60,000 per kanal can be acquired in return for 4,000 kanals of land with the housing organization for an interchange. A report on the development initiatives along N25 during the last 10 years has been requested by the committee.
Senator Pervaiz Rasheed chaired the panel’s meeting. Along with senior officials from relevant departments, the meeting was attended by Senators Dost Ali Jeesar, Samina Mumtaz, Zamir Hussain Ghumro, Mohammad Abdul Qadir, Muhammad Tallal Badar, Mohsin Aziz, and Aon Abbass.
Senator Mohsin Aziz’s notification about the problems travelers from Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have in reaching Islamabad International Airport—more especially, the absence of dedicated access from the M1 portion to the airport—was on the agenda. According to the NHA Chairman, the roundabout was shut down once the Metro Bus was built.
He urged that individuals traveling from Peshawar take the Fateh Jang exit instead of the Islamabad junction to reach the airport. He stated that attempts are being made to remedy this issue and that he will meet with the Capital Development Authority (CDA) before reporting back to the committee.
A thorough briefing on the granting of a No Objection Certificate (NOC) to Capital Smart City, Islamabad, for the development of a motorway interchange, was also on the program. The legitimacy of awarding NOC status to a new colony on the M2 Motorway was questioned by Senator Aon Abbas.
According to the interchange regulation, a housing society is qualified for an interchange if it owns 4,000 kanals of land, the NHA Chairman stated. At a rate of Rs. 60,000 per kanal, the associated price is Rs. 5 million. He claimed that the locations of upcoming motorway interchanges will be revealed shortly.
Senator Talal Chaudhry emphasized that the interchange for this society is strategically positioned near the motorway’s entrance and should be developed as a formal interchange, much like others. According to officials, approving the construction of interchanges involves 14 entities.
Senator Chaudhry requested that a comparative analysis of the former policy and the current policy under development be submitted to the committee.
He emphasized that the Smart City interchange should only receive its designation once it fully meets all required standards.
With this exchange, private corporate interests are growing, Chairman Pervaiz Rasheed added. He warned that the NHA runs the risk of turning into a commercial partner under the pretense of societal development. “Unfortunately, this is the only interchange where barriers are not visible,” he stated, asking why the local area name had not been utilized. He emphasized that the motorway, not private enterprises, should gain from future policies.
The Balochistan Medical Emergency Response Centre (BMERC) reported 46,000 accidents on Balochistan roadways over the past five years owing to worsening conditions, leading to countless fatalities and injuries. Senator Samina Mumtaz Zehri expressed concern about this frightening data. She was disappointed that there had been no good answers.
According to Senator Samina Mumtaz, her queries were not being sufficiently addressed. The member was alluding to N25, the NHA Chairman observed. The chairman of the committee stated that accidents on the N25 are more frequent and urgently need to be fixed.
Senator Abdul Qadir estimated that it would take ten years to complete the four projects on N25, which are worth Rs. 40 billion and have a yearly budget of Rs. 5 billion. The chairman of the committee suggested that until the current projects in Balochistan are completed, no additional ones should be initiated.
Projects costing more than Rs. 70 million are subject to third-party audits, the NHA Chairman stated. Concerned about corruption in Balochistan, Senator Samina Mumtaz claimed that poor construction is what pushes local communities to conflict. She cited recent disasters and demanded transparency about the money spent on projects in Balochistan during the past ten years.
In her argument that revenue is being improperly handled, Senator Samina Mumtaz cited the regular amount of people killed on the roadways and connected these problems to an increase in extremism and institutional corruption.
Safety signs would be erected as soon as construction on the “Bloody Road” begins, the NHA Chairman assured.
The chairman of the panel asked for comprehensive details about the construction carried out on N25 throughout the previous decade. Full deployment on the N25 is not possible because of security concerns, according to the IG of Motorway Police.
