Islamabad: Contractors from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa staged a protest outside the National Highway Authority (NHA) Headquarters in Islamabad today against the prolonged delay in payment of their outstanding dues. The protesters stated that the non-payment of dues on time had made it increasingly difficult to continue work on ongoing construction projects. They said the situation had caused serious financial difficulties for contractors and was also affecting the prograess of development projects across the province. During the protest, senior NHA contractors, including Mohammad Israr Khan, Khalid Khattak, Ehsan, Azghar, Muhammad Zada and Nawab Ali, held a meeting with NHA General Manager Aftab Babar. The meeting focused on the contractors’ demands and issues relating to the payment of outstanding dues. During the meeting, General Manager Aftab Babar requested time until Thursday to make further progress on the matter. It was agreed that the contractors would meet the NHA Chairman on Thursday, following which a decision would be made regarding the future course of action. The issue of outstanding payments is of particular concern for key development projects in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, including the Garam Chashma Road in Chitral. Delays in payments, coupled with the limited construction season, have raised concerns about the timely completion of these projects.
