HYDERABAD, March 30: Federal Minister for Communications Shamim Ahmed Siddiqui said on Friday that work on conversion of Karachi-Hyderabad Super Highway into a six lane motorway would begin by June this year.

The minister said talking to journalists on the sidelines of annual sports function at the Government College Kali Mori, which he inaugurated, that an internal committee of the National Highway Authority (NHA) would ensure transparency and quality of work in the Rs400 billion roads the ministry planned to build by 2014.

He said that with the induction of new chairman in NHA positive results would emerge in the working of the ministry which was faced with the challenge of completing its projects of road networks within the targeted period.

He said that conversion of Karachi-Hyderabad Super Highway into six lanes would be made on build, operate and transfer (BOT) basis and the contractor, Standard Construction Company, would be given a go-ahead after it submitted a report on its financial accounts by March 24. Failing which, he said, the contract would be terminated, he warned.

He said that the ministry had stepped up pace of work on the conversion of Karachi-Thatta road into four lanes and planned to spend Rs400 billion on laying roads network under National Trade Corridor in the country by 2014.

To a question about inquiry into the substandard construction of 48 kilometre piece of Nooriabad-Hyderabad road, the minister said that it involved an amount of Rs600 million and its report was to be submitted to the ministry.

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