Chinese companies not bound to hire Pakistani engineers on road projects, NHA says

Contrary to other projects in the country, Chinese companies are not bound to hire Pakistani engineers in road projects under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) package, revealed Chairman National Highway Authority (NHA) Shahid Ashraf Tarar.
According to Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC), every foreign company is bound to hire at least 30 per cent engineers in their projects and the violation of such rules are resulting in depriving the talented youth from jobs, said parliamentarians from the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Pakistan People's Party Parliamentarians (PPPP) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).
The reservations were expressed in the National Assembly Standing Committee on Communications which met with Muhammad Muzammil Qureshi in the chair here on Tuesday. The committee directed the NHA to present a detailed report of foreign contractors and consultants, besides the number of local engineers hired in the road projects.
Briefing the committee, the chairman NHA said that CPEC is a government-to-government agreement, where Chinese companies are not bound to hire Pakistani engineers. However, the committee members expressed reservations that the ratio of unemployment is increasing over here and despite having engineering degrees in their hands, people are moving abroad in search of jobs.
Engineer Hamid-ul-Haq of the PTI raised the issue which was strongly backed by Sar Zameen Khan of the PML-N and Nazir Ahmed Bughio of PPPP. The committee directed that NHA may ensure the involvement of local engineers and consultants, etc, while initiating new government projects to avoid frustration among the local masses.
The committee members raised questions on exorbitant increase in the toll tax on motorways and directed to brief the committee on the matter. The NHA officials informed that FWO has increased the toll tax but it would remain frozen till 2019. Tarar said that M-2 has been handed over to the FWO, which would not only maintain it but would also share revenue. The NHA has so far received Rs 20 billion from the FWO and would earn Rs 206 billion in the next 20 years.
The chairman NHA informed the committee members that Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif will inaugurate the 80-kilometre section of Hyderabad-Karachi Road (M-9) by the end of January. However, the committee members said that it would be appropriate if the said project is inaugurated after its completion. Tarar said that according to the BoT agreement, after the completion of 65 kilometres section, it can be opened that is why the Prime Minister is going to inaugurate it.
The chairman NHA said that the authority receives a grant of only Rs 2 billion from the government, which is too little for maintenance of 12,000 kilometres road network in the country. The NHA generates Rs 23-24 billion from different resources.
He further said that Rs 696 million have so far been generated from right of way (ROW) in the current fiscal year and it is targeted to double the revenue from Rs 573.65 million in 2015-16 to Rs 1.1 billion in 2016-17.
The committee expressed satisfaction over the completion of Larkana-Mohenjo-Daro Road; however, it directed that the NHA may ensure the completion of its maintenance work ie completion of shoulders display of traffic signs and reflective studs, etc, in order to make it functional at the earliest. The committee also directed the NHA for early completion of the ongoing projects.