ISLAMABAD: Faulty planning by regime of Gen Pervez Musharraf is causing inordinate delay in completion of multi-billion-rupee New Benazir Bhutto International Airport in Fatehjang.

The airport, which was to be completed by the current year, is now expected to be completed by the end of 2014 or in the beginning of 2015.

One of the main flaws in the project was that it was inaugurated by the former president without its site plan and design in hand.

“There was a lapse on the part of the Musharraf regime which kicked off the project without its design,” said a senior official of the Civil Aviation Authority.

However, the present management of the project has removed bottlenecks and now the civil and other works are progressing speedily.

When contacted, NBBIA Deputy Manager Muhammad Ashraf told Dawn that designing of such a mega development project was a difficult task which had to be done before its execution. “Designing of an airport of international standard requires at least two years and its physical development work needs at least there years,” he said.

The official said it was astonishing how such a mega project had been launched without preparing design and other necessary planning.

When asked if there was no design and planning how runways of the project had been constructed, the official said that designing of runways could be completed in a month but designing of terminals, buildings, sewer system, water, drainage and lighting systems required several months.

The official said that now international standards were being maintained and these were being monitored by international experts.

The former PPP government had announced in December last year that cargo service of the airport would start working in Feb this year, but this could not be achieved. Non-availability of water in Fatehjang is said to be one of major reasons for the delay of the project but the CAA has now found a way to overcome the problem.

“We have constructed huge water tanks on each side of the runways to store rainwater which will be used after filtration,” the deputy manager said.

He said that all departments concerned had been told to complete their works immediately.

The Islamabad Electric Supply Company has approved installation of 132KV grid station for the airport.

Similarly, the National Highway Authority (NHA) has approved a road connectivity plan to link the airport road with Motorway M-II.

Focusing on road connectivity, the CAA has still some concerns about slow pace of work on some roads, including the under-construction Kashmir highway, which is the shortest route to the airport from Islamabad.

The new airport site is located on a 3,200-acre piece of land in Pind Ranjha near Fatehjang, some 25 kilometres from Zero Point in Islamabad.