Shaukat to perform ground-breaking ceremony of Value Addition City

Faisalabad Industrial Development and Management Committee (FIDMC) chairman Mian Muhammad Latif has said that initial arrangements for the construction of Value Addition City (VAC) have been completed and Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz is expected to perform its ground-breaking ceremony in January.
Talking to newsmen here on Friday, he said 28 acres land near Khurrianwala had been allocated for the VAC where plots would be allotted for the construction of buildings on the pattern of Singapore and Malaysia to house value-added units.
"The VAC to have all the necessary infrastructure and facilities deemed necessary for smooth operation of the industry, in addition to fulfilling the requirements of social and environment compliance," he said, adding that it would hopefully be completed by June 30, 2005.
He said the FIDMC would provide plots for the construction of industrial buildings while a proposal was also under consideration to build units with the co-operation of banks and provide those on rent to the local or foreign investors for the establishment of factories or warehouses.
Talking about Faisalabad Industrial City (FIC), Mian Latif said that was a mega project sprawling over 3,500 acres of land along Motorway (M-3) from Sahianwala to Millat Road.
"The FIC will be at a distance of only half an hour from Faisalabad Airport, at two-hour distance from Lahore and two and half hour distance from Islamabad airport," he remarked.
The FIDMC chairman said the foreign investors based at Lahore or Islamabad could comfortably reach the city any time, and added that it would have big composite textile units and would also be open to accommodate any other industry.
He said while the FIDMC would provide the basic infrastructure, social security was planning to provide residential and health facilities in addition to the establishment of schools and training institutes for workers' children.
The Punjab government had already provided a loan of Rs 1.5 billion at the mark-up rate of only 0.25 percent for the construction of that city, he said.
The FIDMC was in touch with Bank of Punjab for soft loans to industrialists and investors, while efforts were also being made to involve other leading banks in that negotiation, he added.