A Senate panel on Tuesday expressed displeasure on the sale of substandard and expensive food items at tuck shops along the Islamabad-Peshawar motorway.
Chaired by Senator Hidayatullah, the meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Communications also expressed annoyance over the poor state of washrooms at service areas along the motorway.
Senator Bahramand Tangi noted that tuck shops along the Islamabad-Peshawar motorway sold items at a higher price to the customers, while the public washroom facility was also charged.
The National Highway Authority (NHA) Chairman Jawad Rafique Malik said the public washroom facilities were free of charge, but people were supposed to pay money to use “the executive washrooms on M-2” and some other spots.
The NHA chairman put the onus on the district administration to carry out action against profiteering on the shops.
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As Senator Tangi said food items sold at tuck shops were stale, the NHA chairman responded that the authority was unable to inspect the quality of the food items under the contract, adding that it was also the job of the district administration.
He said they had pasted pamphlets inscribed with contact numbers of the relevant quality inspection officials whom the public could call to lodge a complaint.
Last week, the Senate body had taken strong exception to the state of hygiene at the washrooms of the Rashakai service area on Peshawar-Islamabad Motorway (M-1).
In his response, the NHA chairman had told the Senate panel that the Rashakai service area had only 12 bathrooms.
Land in Kaghan
In Tuesday’s meeting, the Senate panel also discussed matters related to the land that was acquired for the construction of a highway in Kaghan.
NHA officials said the cost of the land was Rs400.80 million, while only Rs160.40 million had been paid to the affectees. They said compensation money had been paid according to the rate of the land at the time of its purchase.
However, Senator Salahuddin Tirmizi rejected the NHA’s briefing and said he had written a letter to the Mansehra Deputy Commissioner (DC) two months ago but he had not received a response yet.
The senator added that he had sent a letter to the NHA’s member finance too but to no avail. Senator Tirmizi said it was not his personal problem but the problem of 3,000 people.
At this, the NHA chairman tendered an apology to the senator. The committee assured the senator of the resolution of the matter soon.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 27th, 2021.
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