BRIDGES built almost a century ago such as Karachi’s Drigh Road bridge or one connecting Lahore city to the cantonment survive because of proper design, quality of construction, award of contracts on merit and supervisory control by qualified engineers with integrity.

Unfortunately, in Pakistan, contracts are awarded solely on recommendations, kickbacks and connections without regard to public interest.

When contractors become more powerful than those awarding contracts, bridges will fall, public buildings will collapse and wirings in hospital nurseries will short circuit, killing hundreds.

It has become almost a routine affair to read about under-construction bridges in Karachi collapsing or the recent collapses of the overhead bridge near Lahore’s Harbanspura built in 2010 and fire in Lahore Services Hospital nursery.

It is shocking to learn that lucrative contracts for bridges were given to the powerful National Logistics Cell, a subsidiary of the Army Welfare Trust, which should explain why no punitive action has been taken against the primary contractor who had sublet the contract to other companies.

There is a conflict of interest when a retired army official is appointed director operations and main contractor of Ring Road, Lahore, with the contract awarded to AWT’s subsidiary NLC. It is the responsibility of the main contractor awarded the job for any deficiencies in completing the job that they may have outsourced to sub-contractors.

Major construction contracts worth billions of rupees are being awarded on political considerations to contractors so powerful, that the state machinery tasked with inspection is helpless and the corrupt within them are facilitated to head these departments so that the nexus between contractors, supervisory engineers and civil bureaucrats thrives, while taxpayer-funded projects suffer.

This reminds me of a similar stance by the former mayor of Karachi when a bridge collapsed within a month of its completion. Those responsible are guilty of culpable homicide, and if not punished, then such incidents will increase in frequency because of the greed of a few.

RAHAT SIDDIQI Karachi

Probe & accountability WITHIN moments of an overhead bridge collapsing near Harbanspura on Lahore’s Ring Road, an MNA from PML-N came out in defence of the contractor by stating that the accident happened because of the truck driver’s mistake. The driver is no longer alive to defend himself. The chief minister of Punjab, who has a relatively cleaner record of good governance than that in other provinces of federation, should ensure that a transparent investigation is conducted to restore his credibility, which has been eroded by his MNA. What is the stake of this MNA and how does he come up with such an assessment? Was he there on the scene as a witness? Is the MNA involved in construction business directly or indirectly? If bridges constructed on highways are to collapse upon collision with a truck, than such bridges cannot be declared safe and surely there was a deficiency in either design or quality of construction.

Accidents, earthquake shocks and floods are part of routine load stresses that bridges, overhead by-pass roads and walkway bridges are designed to withstand.

If properly constructed and designed, bridges survive for over 50 years and more. The bridge near Fortress Stadium, Lahore and on Sharea Faisal near Karachi airport are living proofs of longevity.

We have witnessed bridges collapsing in Karachi within months and weeks of completion and no meaningful investigation ever conducted nor guilty punished.They are not supposed to be fragile ornaments.

This investigation must be free from bureaucratic or political interference especially when an elected representative is found to be overzealous in bailing out a contractor under investigation.

It is time that public development work was given on contract more transparently and this company even if it is NLC, should be delisted from the approved list of contractors, in the interest of public safety and safeguarding tax-payer-funded projects.

TARIQ ALI Lahore