Provision of facilities to people priority, says minister

LAHORE:In the first phase of Punjab Intermediate Cities Improvement Investment Programme, development projects are being carried out in Sialkot and Sahiwal at a cost of Rs44 billion.

This was stated by Provincial Minister for Local Government and Community Development Mian Mahmoodur Rasheed here on Sunday. He said Rawalpindi, Sargodha, Muzaffargarh, Rahimyar Khan, DG Khan, Bahawalpur and Multan would be included in the second phase of the programme.

Provision of facilities to the people at their doorstep is the top priority of the government of the Punjab, said Mian Mahmoodur Rasheed and added that instructions had already been issued to further speed up the development work on various schemes by carried out by Local Government Department.

All legal requirements are being fulfilled for procurement, whereas, an effective monitoring mechanism has also been developed, he claimed. The minister said that transparency in development projects was the top priority of the Punjab government. He informed that work was being carried out for providing municipal infrastructure, including water supply, sewerage, solid waste management, public parks and streetlights, in 16 cities at a cost of Rs34 billion.

He said that development projects had been designed in accordance with the international studies. Mian Mahmoodur Rasheed stated provision of high quality municipal services were being ensured to the citizens following the vision of Prime Minister Imran Khan and Chief Minister Usman Buzdar. Local Government Department would be turned into an exemplary institution of public service, he concluded.