NHA to start physical work on Karachi-Hyderabad Motorway soon

[Salman]

NHA to start physical work on Karachi-Hyderabad Motorway soon

ISLAMABAD: National Highways Authority (NHA) will start physical work on Karachi-Hyderabad Motorway (M-9) project soon.
An official of NHA informed the implementation on M-9 project was priority of the Authority and Sindh government has been facilitating NHA in administrative matters to ensure better, qualitative communication service to the people.
He said 136 kilometers (km) long Karachi-Hyderabad Motorway was an important project not only in the perspective to have better communication facilities to the people of both cities but was a part of Karachi-Lahore Motorway (KLM) project to facilitate the people of the entire country.
He said almost all work except mutation of 200 acres of land at district Jamshoro has been completed and hopefully physical work on this project would be started within calendar year 2014.
This project needs 6,868 acres of land for its reserved Right of Way out of which 5,296 acres of land has so far been mutated in favour of the NHA while remaining land expect 200 at Jamshoro is ready for mutation.
He said presently Super Highway was in dilapidated condition due to heavy traffic and expiry of its designed period.
He said for repair and improvement of the highway, NHA approved periodic maintenance schemes under Annual Maintenance Plan (AMP) 2013-14 amounting to Rs 305.28 million.
Twice in the past few years the NHA awarded the contract to two firms on build-operate-transfer (BOT) basis but both failed to complete financial close as per conditions of the contract and their contracts were terminated.
The project will cost Rs 6.3 billion and the scope of work includes expansion of the road from four to six lanes and provision of service areas.
In September 2006, Authority had signed a concession agreement for construction of the 136 km M-9 with Standard Construction but the contract was cancelled next year as the firm failed to complete financial close in time.
In 2011 the NHA awarded the contract of construction of Carica-Hyderabad Motorway (M-9) to Malaysian Construction Company Binapuri Holding on BOT basis with concessionaire period of 28 years.