RAWALPINDI: The Rawalpindi Ring Road project is expected to see yet another delay as a result of the authorities’ decision to realign the already-stalled road project.
According to sources, the Punjab Planning and Development (P&D) has made the decision to work with an international consultancy firm to complete the project’s readjustment, which has been put on hold for the past 15 years.
The National Highway Authority had previously objected to the Rawalpindi Ring Road project’s design and traffic control.
Currently, the relevant authorities have begun considering changing the layout by constructing a link road from Fateh Jhang to Sangjani.
Earlier, the Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) had awarded a contract of Rs. 22.8 billion to the Frontier Works Organization (FWO) for the construction of the 38.3-kilometer-long Rawalpindi Ring Road from Rawat to Thalian.
Official sources said that a third-party valuation was necessary through international bidding. They said that work on the project would start after the realignment of the Rawalpindi Ring Road project.
According to the officials, “The international consultant firm would submit recommendations regarding the modification of the design and change in the route and after that, the competent authority will take a final decision to kick off the construction.”
It is worth mentioning that the project came to a halt, when the Anti-Corruption Establishment, Punjab, detained former Rawalpindi Commissioner Muhammad Mehmood, former project director Muhammad Abdullah, former land acquisition collector Waseem Ali Tabish, and ten other officials on suspicion of corruption and abuse of power during the alignment of the road.
The commencement of construction on the project is anticipated to be further delayed by the proposed realignment, which in the past has also benefitted prominent landowners, and real estate players last year which resulted in the government’s decision to scrap the ring road project.
