ISLAMABAD: The National Highway Authority (NHA) is working on the dualization and upgrading project of the 83-kilometer Old Bannu Road in the Bannu district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, despite the economic downturn.
According to sources, the project is divided into three packages, with the first package, the 40-kilometer Domail-Khurrum portion, being awarded to the Frontier Works Organization (FWO) at a bid price of Rs. 7.132 billion.
The details indicate that the work on the first package started in May 2018 and has achieved nearly 61% of physical progress so far.
The second package, the 35 km Khurram-Krapa portion, costing Rs. 5.927 billion, was also awarded to the FWO, and work on it started in February 2018, achieving over 58 percent of physical progress so far.
The third package, the 8-kilometer Gaandi Chowk-Sarai Naurang section, was awarded to the joint venture of M/s NCC-IKAN-HRPL at a bid price of Rs. 0.718 billion while work on this package started in May 2018 and 100% progress has already been accomplished.
According to NHA officials, the project would provide an alternate route for heavy traffic movement on the Indus Highway (N-55), reducing the traffic burden on the highway.
Besides, the official also emphasized that infrastructure development in less developed areas would contribute to their economic uplift through increased trade activities.
According to sources, the project was initially expected to be completed by the end of October 2021 but is being delayed due to sluggish approval of funds.
