LAHORE, March 11: Chief Minister Pervaiz Elahi will inaugurate the construction of two new underpasses near the Jinnah and Doctors' hospitals on the canal bank on March 15.

Punjab Communication and Works Minister Chaudhry Zaheeruddin Khan said at a press conference here on Thursday that the underpasses would be built only on the sides of the hospitals as no crossing existed on the other bank of the canal. Work on both the underpasses would begin simultaneously and completed in three months. Every underpass was expected to cost Rs190 million.

He said the National Engineering Services, Pakistan, had been entrusted the task to prepare feasibility of the Lahore Ring Road. Plans for remodelling of The Mall from Town Hall to Avari Hotel and construction of underpasses at Dharampura, Kalima Chowk, Qartaba Chowk and Azadi Chowk were also under study.

Widening of Multan Road from Samanabad Morr towards Chowk Yateem Khana would be considered next year. Work on the Lahore-Faisalabad and Lahore-Kasur highways would start in the near future after completion of formalities.

Mr Khan said his department had submitted the estimates for the construction of an underpass at the Committee Chowk, Rawalpindi, and flyover at Jhal Khanuana in Faisalabad.

The department had already completed two underpasses, a bridge and 10 roads during the current financial year and would complete 97 buildings and roads projects, including four bridges and two underpasses, by June 30.

He said work was in progress on 144 projects - 135 approved and nine unapproved - under the annual development programme. The allocation for the projects had been raised from Rs1,020 million to Rs5,318.2 million and Rs60.896 million had been utilized till Feb 29. The remaining amount was expected to be utilized by June 30.

He said the department had completed construction of 350 kilometres roads in 13 districts of the province at a cost of Rs1,256.22 million under the Rural Construction Project with financial assistance of Japan.

The C&W department had started 5,514 schemes under the District Development Sector Project with an allocation of Rs42,810 million of which Rs2,684.4 million had already been utilized and the remaining amount would be utilized by the end of the current financial year, he added.

He said 7,448 schemes of construction of buildings for various government departments was in progress at a cost of Rs2,676.1 million of which Rs822.2 million had so far been utilized.

The minister said the department was making preparations for implementation of Rs13,328 million Punjab Road Sector Development Project with Rs6,336 million assistance of the Asian Development Bank.

The project envisaged widening of 303 kilometres long 10 to 16 feet wide roads in eight districts - Khanewal, Jhang, Toba Tek Singh, Sahiwal, Hafizabad, Faisalabad, Sargodha and Khushab - up to 24 feet and 1,020 kilometres village link roads to 20 feet. A sum of Rs331 million had been allocated for the project during the current financial year, he added.

C&W secretary Sibtain Fazle Haleem said his department was not encroaching on the domain of the City District Government by undertaking construction of underpasses or the ring road. All these projects were funded by the provincial government.

The government had to pay 5 per cent service charge for execution of projects through the CDG departments. It was saving the amount by the execution of projects through its own department, he maintained.