Administrative issues jack up NHA project costs

The cost of 33 National Highway Authority (NHA) projects has increased from Rs79.5 billion in 2008 to Rs90.73 billion in 2021 due to non-availability of funds and delay in land acquisition.

According to the documents available with The Express Tribune, between 2008 and 2021, 33 projects of the authority were completed at cost overruns. Due to the delay in these projects, the national exchequer had to bear huge losses.

The engineering cost of these projects was Rs76.4 billion and the budget was Rs79.5 billion, which was completed at Rs90.73 billion.

The reason for the increase in the cost is that the funds allocated to the NHA for these projects were not received on time, and in some cases, there was a big gap between the release of funds and financial phasing.

Another reason was the delay in land acquisition. The projects that cost more due to delays or funding issues include Hasan Abdal Havelian Expressway, Yakmach - Kharan Road Section, Zhob Mughal Kot Section of N-70, Upgradation of Jalalpur Pir Walauch Road, Interchange on Charsadda Road of Peshawar Northern Bypass and others under the Multan Development Package.