Maryam makes surprise visit to check quality of uplift works

LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz on Friday made a surprise visit to various zones of the historic Lahore Development Program.

She inspected the progress on ongoing development projects and directed that equal development and quality of every area of Lahore be ensured. Talking to officials, she said: “I want to create such a system so that such problems do not resurface. The Lahore Development Program is meant for the uplift of the entire Lahore including poor, rich and middle class areas. Years of public grievances will be resolved under this program.”

Under the project, the entire Lahore has been divided into 9 zones so that no area, neighbourhood or settlement is left out of development process. The project will be implemented in two parts. In the first phase, development work will be done in six zones. In the second phase, it will be done in three zones. Nine zones have been named after Gulberg, Data Ganj Bukhsh, Samanabad, Shalamar, Ravi, Aziz Bhatti, Nishtar, Wagah and Allama Iqbal.

The CM was informed that out of total 450 development schemes in the first phase, 252 belonged to the Wasa and 198 to Municipal Corporation Lahore. Construction work has been assigned in 433 schemes, while work has also started on 411 schemes. Work on pavements, roads, intersections, sewerage is in progress. For the first time, large diameter sewer lines are being laid in all zones. Modern engineering designs and methods are being adopted so that no problems with regard to sewage blockages and drainage are faced by people.

Meanwhile, Maryam Nawaz chaired a meeting on the Lahore Development Program in which progress on uplift works was reviewed. The deputy commissioner Lahore presented a report. The chief minister directed carrying out desilting of the canal. She directed building a sewer system keeping in mind its future needs. The CM was apprised that the Wasa would lay a total of 780 kilometres of new pipes of one to six feet diameter in Lahore. In the first phase, 450 kilometres of sewer pipes will be laid in Lahore.

The CM said, “Streets in villages should be paved on the same pattern and quality as in cities. No compromise will be made on the quality of development projects.”