2nd lane of Torkham-Jalalabad highway damaged

JALALABAD (PAN): The second lane of the Torkham-Jalalabad highway has been damaged by recent rains in eastern Nangarhar province, the public works department said on Saturday.

Dualisation work on the 74-kilometre road was halted years ago due to funding issues between the Pakistani government and the National Housing Authority (NHA), the Nangahar public works director told Pajhwok Afghan News.

Eng. Fazal Rabi Walizi said 70 percent of the road was rebuilt by Pakistan in 2006, but 50 percent of it had been damaged due to lack of maintenance and heavy rains in recent weeks.

He recalled Pakistan’s public works minister, during a meeting with the Afghan finance minister, had vowed to resume work on the project within six months. However, the promise is yet to be kept.

In response to a question, the director said 638 kilometers of roads had been built and paved across Nangarhar and work on the second Jalalabad-Kabul.

The official added two key bridges, costing $10 million, were built in Lal Pura and Chaparhar districts this year and work on a similar project in Behsud would be initiated in the near future.  

Nangarhar roads had been damaged by heavy cargo vehicles and NATO supply convoys, with each vehicle carrying up to 70 tonnes of goods, he said.  About 72 employees of the public works department lacked the capacity and resources to supervise all projects in the province, he concluded.

mm/ma/mud

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