The Punjab government on Tuesday accorded approval for the establishment of Integrated Command, Control and Communication Center (IC-3) in Rawalpindi and Murree under the public-private partnership.
The approval was given at the 41st meeting of the public-private partnership steering committee (PPPC) held at 8 Club Road under the chair of Punjab Finance Minister Hashim Jawan Bakht on Tuesday. MPAs namely Tariq Abdullah, Sajid Alam Khan, advisor to CM Dr Salman Shah, chairman P&D, secretary public-private partnership steering committee and others also participated in the meeting.
The meeting reviewed various matters including approval for more funds and appraisal of new proposed projects. The ongoing projects included the construction of Lai Express Way Rawalpindi, verification of private vehicles, purchase of equipment for weigh stations and dualization of Depalpur-Okara Road, Sumandri-Jhang Road, Head Punjab-Muzaffargarh Road, Vehari Road and Faisalabad to Chiniot Sargodha Road.
The P&D chairman briefed about the procedure of PPPC steering committee and details of ongoing schemes. The managing directors of the Punjab Small Industries Corporation and the Punjab Safe City Authority (PSCA) briefed about the proposed projects of industry and police departments relating to the public-private partnership.
The Minister accorded approval to Rs 302 million for ongoing schemes and stressed the need for explaining different aspects of new schemes. He directed the public-private partnership cell to give a detailed briefing about the procedure, role and steps of public-private partnership based projects to newly-elected members of the committee so that there may not be any ambiguity in future decisions. He said the committee should also be informed about the utility and expenditures of the projects and prudent utilization of funds should also be ensured so that the public-private partnership model could be best utilized.
Bakht added that the selection of schemes through the public-private partnership is being made under the five-year development plan. He directed the P&D department that possible traffic problems and environmental pollution due to the construction work should also be kept in mind while preparing the feasibility reports. This would help to use environmental friendly technology, he added.
He also directed to acquire the services of university students and research scholars for research and innovation in different projects. The meeting also approved guidelines for proposed viability gap fund of public-private partnership cell and the finance department.