Poor condition of Mansehra roads: Court summons NHA officials

MANSEHRA: The Consumer Court judge, Faryal Zia Mufti, has summoned the National Highway Authority (NHA)’s chairman, general-manager (North), maintenance director and deputy director to appear before her court on November 15 to clarify their position on the dilapidated condition of roads in city and rest of the district.

“The court has issued notices to the NHA’s officials on the application of a lawyers’ panel who wanted the information as to where the funds meant for the maintenance of important arteries are spent,” Sheikh Noorulamin advocate told reporters on Monday.

He said that lawyers, including Zia Mohammad Khan, Masood Shah, Asim Mumtaz, Azhar Sajjad and Ibrar Khan Swati had filed the application with the consumer court against the highly dilapidated conditions of the roads.

“We have sought details of the funds spent by the NHA in the name of maintenance and repairing of the Mansehra-Naran-Jalkhad road section N-5, Karakoram Highway, roads leading to Attershisha, Shinkiari, Lari Adda and in city and its suburbs roads,” Noorulamin said.

He said the main arteries were totally broken into pieces and patches and ditchers were created causing inconvenience to the commuters and motorists.Noorulamin said that they had also pleaded the court that people of Mansehra and the rest of the country were paying taxes regularly but suffering because of the poor condition of roads. He said the accident and deaths rate on these roads is much higher compared to roads in the rest of the province because of patches and ditches.Noorulamin held the officials of the NHA responsible for the human losses and damage to vehicles and called for taking them to justice under the relevant laws.