Islamabad: The Senate Standing Committee on Economic Affairs has halted the financial bidding process for the National Highway Authority’s (NHA) N-45 project due to the exclusion of consultants from the bid evaluation process. The Committee also ordered the recovery of Rs. 20 million in a separate case concerning the repair of GT-14 machines in the 660 MW Jamshoro Coal-Fired Power Project. These actions were taken during a meeting chaired by Senator Saifullah Abro, which focused on transparency and governance across major development initiatives.

According to Senate of Pakistan, the meeting included Senators Haji Hidayatullah Khan, Kamran Murtaza, Kamil Ali Agha, and Rana Mahmood-ul-Hassan, who participated via video link. The Committee reviewed the tendering process for the N-45 Chakdara-Chitral Road and noted discrepancies in the provided data, deeming it incomplete. The position of General Manager (Pand CA) at NHA remains vacant, contributing to concerns about the process. Recommendations were made for the Economic Affairs Division (EAD) to monitor the tendering process more closely and include EAD representatives to prevent irregularities.

The Committee emphasized the need for complete documentation before proceeding with the tendering process. In another agenda item, the Committee was updated on the Jamshoro power project, which is reliant on imported coal. The Committee urged a shift to local coal to conserve foreign exchange and addressed other energy sector concerns, including auctioning of power plants and rising electricity tariffs.

In the urban sector, the Committee discussed the World Bank-funded Competitive and Livable City of Karachi (CLICK) project, which focuses on infrastructure rehabilitation. Geotagging was recommended for transparency, and the UIPT Survey 2025 was highlighted for expanding the tax base. Coordination with the Government of Sindh was directed to ensure senior officials’ involvement in future meetings.