President LAFH demanded for resuming work on Lawari tunnel

CHITRAL (GroundReport): The Lowari tunnel which was open for traffic during winters has been closed for all type of vehicular traffic, on the pretext that work will resume inside the tunnel the next day, but so far no work whatsoever has resumed inside the tunnel. The executing agency NHA says that they were paying Rs 3 lacs daily to the Korean company for hampering their work by closing the tunnel for work for two hours in winters. In the last two weeks of forced travel over the Lowari pass, the country has lost millions of rupees due to increased fuel usage by vehicles, not to talk of the waste of time and wear and tear of vehicles and lastly human beings. A Mr. Kim of Korean company SAMBU confirmed to this scribe that work has not resumed due to payment problems. He said that some 700 million fund is still pending and when National Highway Authority (NHA) pay this amount to SAMBU company work will be resumed on both tunnels. Hence traffic has also banned inside the tunnel. As SAMBU company working in small tunnel of 2 KM from Ziarat to Baradam but due to no payment by NHA (their client) work was stopped on this one as well work has stopped earlier on the big tunnel of 8.5 KM In such a case there is no reason that the tunnel be kept closed for traffic. After all tunnel is to facilitate traffic which it was doing during winters. Keeping a hole in the mountain closed for no rhyme or reason speaks volumes of the lack of planning and absence of accountability in the NHA. Social and political circle of Chitral as well as president Legal Aid Forum for Human Rights Chitral Abdul Nasir while talking to this scribe from United Nation (USA) on telephone demanded for resuming work on both tunnels. He urged on federal government and especially ministry of communication for payment to SAMBU company to enable them to complete the second tunnel upto the end of August 2010.