SC directs NHA to submit report on highways across country

ISLAMABAD (APP): The Supreme Court on Wednesday summoned the Chairman National Highway Authority (NHA) to appear in person before the court and also sought details of highways across the country.

A two-member SC bench comprising Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmed and Justice Mazhar Alam Khan Miankhel heard the case regarding dilapidated condition of RCD highway.

During the course of proceedings, the court asked the NHA to explain why police were not deployed on Quetta-Karachi road for the safety of passengers. The plight of highways could endanger people’s lives, it added.

The bench directed that the condition of Quetta-Karachi road should be improved up to 100 percent. The quality of work of reflectors and marking lines on highways was substandard, it added.

The Chief Justice said that the marking on roads was washed away due to single rain. Chitral-Gilgit Road construction was shown completed in the papers but in reality no such road existed.

He asked why Quetta-Karachi Road was not being built like motorway. All highways except Lahore-Islamabad Motorway have been left unattended, he added.

He said that there were only rocks on Chitral-Gilgit road and a car could not run on that road.

The Chairman NHA said that Chitral-Gilgit Road was being operated by provincial government while the road was handed over to NHA a year ago.

The Chief Justice said that billions of rupees were spent on renovating highways every year while Karachi-Hyderabad road was not being built by NHA.

He observed that the NHA was not doing any standard work. He said that a bridge was not built until 10 people die.

Justice Mazhar asked what was the cost and revenue of NHA? He said that people were ridiculed on roads in the name of searches.

Later, hearing of the case was adjourned till first week of December.