The Supreme Court on Friday expressed concern over the day in completion of the Orange Line Metro Train (OLMT) project, and instructed the construction companies concerned to finish work by May 20.
A two-member bench, headed by Justice Gulzar Ahmed, heard the case and demanded a guarantee of Rs 10 million each from the three construction companies involved in the project.
“The guarantees will be forfeited if the project is not finished by May 20,” Justice Gulzar added, saying he hoped this project would be successful and not “come crashing down”.
Justice Gulzar reprimanded the project’s current director, Fazal Haleem, and said work had been delayed due to him. The court further directed that Justice (r) Jamshed or Justice Abdul Sattar Asghar be made the head of the technical committee. “If the contractors do not work, fire them or put them in prison. The project director is being blackmailed by the construction companies. All three construction companies will give a guarantee of Rs 10 million each, and it will be confiscated if work is not completed by the scheduled date,” Justice Gulzar added.
The court wondered if a mechanism existed to check the quality of construction of the project. The hearing was then adjourned for two weeks. The OLMT project is part of the city metro network and would connect Raiwind, Multan Road, McLeod Road, Lahore Junction Railway Station and the Grand Trunk Road. It would be the first line of the Lahore Metro, the country’s first mass rapid transit train system.