Road expansion project Marrir railway bridge to be dismantled today

[Salman]

RAWALPINDI : Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) and Pakistan Railways on Wednesday removed main hurdle to initiating Rs429 million Marrir Chowk Road Expansion Project after the former convinced the latter to demolish the railway bridge on Thursday night.

RDA wanted to start the project on November 2 but Pakistan Railways refused to approve the design of the bridge to be constructed in place of the old one.

Upon this, he RDA Director General Chaudhry Naseer Ahmad contacted Pakistan Railways Chairman Arif Azeem who assigned Railways Divisional Superintendent Syed Munawar Shah to solve the issue.

On Wednesday, both, Divisional Superintendent Syed Munawar Shah and RDA Director General Chaudhry Naseer Ahmed, held meeting and decided to initiate the project on Thursday night and deferred design approval by Railways’ engineering department till November 15.

“The construction work will be started but the RDA will make some changes in the design after approval of Railways’ engineering department. This, however, will increase the cost of the project,” said an official of the RDA on condition of anonymity.

Under the project, the dual road would be widened by 30 feet each. The work will be carried out by the National Logistic Cell (NLC) and the project would be supervised by the Rawalpindi Development Authority.

It will be first major development project by the provincial government in NA-55, which asked the RDA and NLC to complete the project before March 2013.

“The railway has laid alternative track from Chaklala Railway Station to to connect Rawalpindi Railway station with main lines.

The bridge will be dismantled by the joint team of RDA and railway,” said Syed Munawar Shah while talking to Dawn.