Gujar khan - The Gujar Khan-Pirphulai Road, which has been the main link to the southern areas of Gujar Khan tehsil to the tehsil headquarters, could not be completed even after the passage of two years of its inauguration work and thousands of commuters especially students and traders are forced to suffer a lot due to this delay.
According to details, taking notice of its dilapidated condition, the higher authorities had ordered construction of this road over public demand about three years ago and the Punjab government had announced around one billion rupees for reconstruction.
After two years of digging the existing road surface only 50 percent work could be completed with a single layer of asphalt, while according to the sources, two layers of asphalt were approved. The unfilled and left over patches of the road pose sudden jumps to traffic while right at its origin from Gujar Khan city, half-length cemented pavement leaves the road contracted while the other half side is left bumpy. Traffic snarls during the school and office hours render the commuters helpless, the regular road users pointed out.
Chakri Wakeelan Kass is another area where the dismantled section of the road has become hub of criminals and highway robberies incidents have been experienced by the residents during night hours.
Muhammad Ameen, a local resident, said that nobody is ready to travel by this road during late hours and alternative routes of Ratial or Sohawa roads are preferred by the scared residents.
The shopkeepers of Sasral village pointed out that the access to government high school and the basic health unit remained blocked and the students and the patients are suffering for the last several months. The road side shopkeepers also complained of contracting respiratory diseases due to inhaling dust and polluted air for the last two years. The commuters on public transport have complained that they have to pay extra fare to the transporters as their buses and wagons bear extra fuel and maintenance charges on this bumpy road.
The residents of the area have urged Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Punjab Chief Minister Mariam Nawaz to take serious notice of the situation and order for early completion of the project before the onset of the monsoon season.
Superintending Engineer (SE) Punjab Highways Department, Rao Tahir, when contacted for his comments about the slow pace of the construction work, said that the release of more funds were awaited for this project to be completed.