ISLAMABAD - Poor planning and execution on part of the National Highway Authority (NHA) came under spotlight during ongoing spell of rains as a huge amount of water accumulated on different areas of recently completed Hakla-D I Khan Motorway leaving it unusable for commuters.
Several videos remained in circulation on social media showing the said motorway as a river. Eyewitnesses termed it as flood on the motorway while the field staff said that the main reason behind the accumulation of water on the motorway was the less number of culverts to pass the drainage coming from the mountains.
Federal Minister for Communications and Postal Services Asad Mehmood also took notice of the situation and directed to conduct inquiry and submit the report within next four days.
The minister was presiding over a high level meeting in Ministry of Communications on Tuesday in which issues related to accumulation of rain water and traffic congestion on Hakla-D I Khan Motorway came under discussion.
Asad Mehmood directed that all possible measures should be taken for the protection of life and property of passengers on Hakla-D I Khan Motorway.
Federal Secretary Communications and Chairman National Highway Authority Capt (Retd) Muhammad Khurram Agha and senior officials of the Ministry of Communications and National Highway Authority also attended the meeting.
The minister was informed that as soon as water accumulation was reported on the motorway, immediate action was taken for its drainage to ensure smooth flow of traffic. He however expressed dissatisfaction over performance of NHA and directed to inquire into the incident and submit a report within four days.
He directed that effective management of drainage on motorway should be ensured so that such unpleasant situations could be avoided in the future.
On this occasion, the NHA officials informed the Federal Minister for Communications and Postal Services that the design of Hakla-D.I Khan Motorway will be reviewed in detail and any defects found will be rectified immediately.
The much delayed Hakla-D I Khan Motorway was inaugurated by former prime minister Imran Khan few months ago. According to the original schedule, a 293km long motorway was to be completed by the end of 2018 that was started in 2016. However, it was completed in 2021.