Firdous hopes work on Ring Road project to start in August

RAWALPINDI: Special Assistant to Chief Minister (SACM) Punjab Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan Sunday said efforts were under way to start construction work on long-awaited Rawalpindi Ring Road Project (RRRP) in August this year, which would help ease traffic congestion in Rawalpindi city.

She said a meeting, chaired by chief secretary Punjab, had given approval of 38-km-long RRRP, which would start from GT Road and culminate at Thalian.

Firdous said that the RRR Project inquiry was in the final stages and the findings would be shared with the media and the government would take action in accordance with the law against those involved in illegalities and irregularities committed in the project.

She said the Punjab government was making efforts to cater the needs of nearly 6 million population of six tehsils of Rawalpindi district. There is a shortage of nearly two million houses in the district, she added.

The Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA), she said, was working for the launch of an affordable housing society and providing relief to the deserving citizens. Dr Firdous said strict action was being taken against illegal and fake housing societies.

Out of total 386 housing societies in the RDA, 62 had been approved, 60 were under scrutiny while 264 had been declared illegal by the authority.

She said there were 100 nonexistent societies as they had sold out on-paper plots and runaway. She said 112 FIRs had been lodged against fake housing societies in the respective police stations, 307 notices had been issued to the administration of such schemes. She said the offices of 135 housing schemes had also been sealed by the RDA.

The SACM said the RDA, which was earlier facing a deficit, collected revenue amounting to Rs559 million against the set target of Rs259 million during the current fiscal year. She said the RDA approved 1,300 building plans during one year under a transparent procedure.

Dr Firdous Awan said Prime Minister Imran Khan gave a brave statement of not giving our land to the US military for launching attacks on Taliban in Afghanistan.

In a twitter statement on Sunday, she said there was no room for foreign forces intervention in Pakistan. “The world is admiring Prime Minister Imran Khan’s stance today,” she said.