WB-funded projects to be completed next year: minister

LAHORE: Punjab Minister for Local Government and Community Development (LG&CD) Department Zeeshan Rafique has pledged that all ongoing World Bank (WB) funded schemes under Punjab Municipal Development Fund Company (PMDFC) will be completed by March 2025. He was speaking on the occasion of a briefing by Managing Director Syed Zahid Aziz during a visit to the PMDFC office, here on Friday.

PMDFC working on municipal services projects in 16 cities including Daska, Hafizabad, Jhelum, Kamoke, Muridke, Wazirabad, Gojra, Jaranwala, Jhang, Kamalia, Okara, Bahawalpur, Burewala, Khanewal, Kot Addu and Vehari in a transparent manner, which will significantly improve the quality of life there. Local Government Minister expressed his happiness that PMDFC was the oldest company of the Punjab government which has been playing an important role in providing municipal services in different areas for last twenty five years. He said that it is gratifying that as a pilot project, traditional ponds in the selected villages were being cleaned using modern techniques. “Phase wise cleaning of the polluted ponds was not only promoting aquatic life but also providing water for local agricultural purposes”, he said. The Minister for Local Government emphasised that measures to increase capacity building of municipal committees was the need of the hour because the lack of efficiency of some municipal committees was a hindrance in the timely completion of development schemes. He said that the problem of sewage needs more attention than solid waste management. “Chief Minister Punjab Maryam Nawaz wants all drains to be repaired and cleaned in a phased manner”, told the minister. He directed that sewage projects should be prepared keeping in mind the needs of the next fifty years. He said that in view of the serious sewage problems in Jhang city, work was going on there on priority basis. Zeeshan Rafiq directed PMDFC to take concrete steps to solve the sewage problems at Daska city, pointing out that the problems of sewage and sanitation, especially in small towns, were very painful and need immediate attention.