Survey being conducted for construction of bypass road

MANSEHRA: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)-led Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has initiated the survey of Datta-Shinkiari bypass road to reduce traffic congestion on the Karakoram Highway and Mansehra-Naran-Jalkhad road.

The provincial government has earmarked Rs5 billion in current annual budget for the construction of the bypass road and work on the project would start after the completion of the survey. The officials of the construction company including Mohammad Ali and Zafar Iqbal along with Safada village council Nazim Basharat Ali Swati, Tehsil councillor from Datta Asad Shah, nazim village council Chakia Mohammad Pervez carried out the survey.

"The bypass road would address traffic congestion problem on the KKH from Qalandarabad in Abbottabad to Shinkiari and ensure the smooth flow of traffic in tourism season," Basharat Ali Swati told reporters.

The nazim said the KP government approved the bypass road project and sanctioned Rs5 billion for it. He added the survey was being carried out in such a manner that residential or populated areas would not get affected because of the bypass.

The nazim said that travellers and transporters from Abbottabad district could join that bypass from Qalandarabad and would directly reach their respective destinations without touching main arteries in Mansehra city and its suburbs, which would reduce almost 50 percent burden on the KKH.