PESHAWAR - Despite tall claims of the
government to complete
BRT in March 2020, further delay is expected in
the inauguration of Bus
Rapid Transit (BRT) project in Peshawar as drainage system could not be
completed at the University Road.
Due to lack of any
drainage system at University Road, the rainwater accumulates on the
sides of BRT stations. In
such a situation, it will be
impossible for people to
use the stations in these
areas in case of rain.
The Peshawar Development Authority
(PDA) is working rapidly on construction of the
drainage system and in
this regard it has written
a letter to the SNGPL to
identify the gas lines on
the road to clear the way
for drainage. The SNGPL has told the PDA that
there are six-inch and
10-inch pipelines in the
area.
The PDA will have to
pay the money in case
of shifting of the gas
pipelines. It is not the
first time that the PDA
has asked the SNGPL to
shift the gas pipelines
and it has paid Rs300
million so far for this
purpose.
The PDA Director General Syed Zafar Ali Shah
said two and a half kilometres nullah will
be constructed along
the University Road till
Speen Jumaat. He said
the existing nullah is
not enough to meet the
drainage requirements
and it is being expanded.
Last month, Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa Minister
for Information Shaukat Yousafzai said that
BRT Peshawar would
be made operational in
April. Few days ago, the
PDA sought an additional amount of Rs4.28 billion from the provincial
government for completion of the BRT project. This demand for increased funds came just
two days after a claim by
the KP information minister that the Peshawar
BRT project was much
cheaper than similar
project in Lahore.
Shaukat Yousafzai had
said the government had
assured the Supreme
Court of Pakistan for
completion of the project
in June as a precautionary measure in case of
any delay. The BRT project, which was supposed
to be completed within
six months, is still incomplete two and a half years
after its inauguration.
While inaugurating
the project on October,
2017, then chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Pervez Khattak had claimed that the
project will be completed in a record duration of
six months.
MARDAN: ROOF
COLLAPSE DEVOURS
FIVE LIVES
Three children died
and five people, including children injured
when roof of a mudhouse collapsed in Tehsil Takhatbhai due to
torrential rain on Thursday early in the morning, Rescue 1122 official
said.
According to Rescue
1122 Spokesmen Bilal
Jalal, a roof of the mudhouse of poor driver
identified as Dost Mohammad resident of Sarwarabad Jalala at tehsil Takhatbhai collapsed
early in the morning.
As a result, his 8-yearsold daughter Faiza, fouryear-old daughter Sana
and infant child Waqas
died while 12-year-old
Niamat, seven-yearold Sabah, two-year-old
Asma, six-year-old Abbas and their 50-year-old
mother Basirat Bibi got
injured.
Ambulances of the Rescue 1122 were rushed to
the spot and carried out
rescue operation. The injured were shifted to the
hospital.