Autobahn LED tender is the focus of an anti-corruption investigation.

The Sindh Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) is investigating the striking LED advertising screens that were erected in the middle of Hyderabad’s recently expanded Autobahn Road.

Bright LED panels atop power poles in the middle of the road are part of the Rs3.2 billion flagship project, whose 2.2-kilometer segment was recently dedicated by PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari.

ACE Hyderabad Zone has opened an investigation into the advertising contract in response to a complaint submitted by Kashis Hussain Shah, the chairman of the Pakistan Youth Committee. In an official letter, Enquiry Officer Agha Hussain instructed Municipal Commissioner Zahoor Lakhan of Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (HMC) to forward the Director Tax and pertinent documents to the ACE office by September 30.

Due to concerns about the contracting process’s openness, ACE has asked for a comprehensive record of all the LED screens that have been erected in the Autobahn Road greenbelt.

Shah claims that the advertising tender was only given Rs30 million when it could have brought in at least Rs200 million. He says he approached ACE since he had previously written to the HMC asking for information but had not heard back.

Shah has also called on authorities to look into the construction of massive hoardings on top of ancient, structurally unstable structures, purportedly without the necessary No Objection Certificates (NOCs) or licenses from the Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA).

In response to his allegation, ACE has broadened the scope of its investigation to encompass all advertising tenders given out between 2021 and 2025.

One commercial thoroughfare that is expanding quickly is the Autobahn Road. Its improved part passes by important landmarks like Fateh Chowk, Ghagra Mori, the Hyderabad-Mirpurkhas Road bridge, and the new vegetable market as it connects Hala Naka to the Hussainabad intersection (Giddu Chowk).