LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz has approved a special package for Gujarat, which will upgrade its entire drainage system.
“There is only one drain for the entire city, which is not enough for such a large population; thus, we will have to construct more drains there,” Punjab Local Government Minister Zeeshan Rafique said and directed the officials concerned to construct RCC in place of brick drains for better drainage in Gujrat.
He expressed these views while chairing a meeting to review the Punjab Development Programme (PDP) here on Saturday. Punjab Local Government Secretary Shakeel Ahmed Mian, Special Secretary Asia Gul, Secretary Local Government Board Rizwan Naseer, Additional Secretary Ahmer Kaifi and others also attended the meeting.
The meeting gave special consideration to the situation arising from the recent urban flooding in Gujarat and proposed to construct separate sewers and drains in the city.
Talking about the PDP, the Minister said that initially, schemes will be completed in 52 cities of Punjab under the PDP. “This is a mega project, and in the first phase, PC-1 of the schemes has been approved for 15 cities. Under the PDP, sewage systems and underground water storage tanks will be built in every city so that rainwater can be stored and the risks of urban flooding can also be reduced,” he added.
He further said that for effective urban planning, the Punjab government has approved the deployment of 150 fresh graduate engineers in all cities. “One engineer should be posted in each city with a population of 100,000, while two or three engineers should be deployed in cities with a population of 200000,” he added, adding that solarised disposal stations will be built in every city.
Rafique directed that land should be allocated for water treatment plants, and the Planning and Development Board Chairman should be consulted for land acquisition. He added that the experience of the Lahore Development Programme should be kept in mind for the PDP so that better results can be obtained.
On this occasion, the Local Government Secretary told the meeting that instead of building traditional drains, the particular needs of each city will be kept in mind. He directed that the drain of Gujrat city should be cleaned continuously, adding that encroachments around the drain of Gujrat will be removed to ensure smooth drainage.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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