Residents of Margalla Town-II in the federal capital will soon get a dedicated link to the Murree Road for entry and exit.
This was announced by the Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Capital Development Authority (CDA) Affairs Ali Nawaz Awan on Sunday as he visited the construction site of the Rawal Dam Interchange.
Awan said that he reviewed and inspected mitigation measures to be undertaken to preserve the surrounding environment apart from limiting the environmental impact of the project.
The special assistant further said that he gave directions regarding the alternative route which will be set up for commuters until the interchange is built.
He added that the government is taking solid steps to fulfil the promises made with residents of the federal capital. In that regard, he said that some projects have already been completed while work on others is in progress and directed the relevant officials to ensure they are completed on time.
With the interior ministry transferring four departments back to the CDA from the elected Islamabad Metropolitan Corporation (IMC), Awan said the civic authority will start carpeting major roads in the city apart from installing and repairing street lights.
Awan said that billions have been allocated for the development of rural areas of the federal capital while the CDA has started solid waste management projects in many non-sector areas of the city as well.
Separately, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) MNA from the federal capital Raja Khurram Nawaz termed the transfer of key departments such as environment, sanitation, water and engineering to the CDA from the IMC will mark a new beginning in transforming Islamabad into a model city.
Welcoming the initiative, Raja said the initiative has enabled the government to carry out long-awaited development work and for restoring the lost beauty of the federal capital as all civic departments will now work under one umbrella.
Berating the performance of former IMC mayor Sheikh Anser Aziz - in whose council both Awan and Raja had served as opposition councillors before resigning ahead of the 2018 general elections, Raja said the condition of roads, solid waste system, streetlights and footpaths of the capital had deteriorated in recent years.
Raja further said that the mayor, who resigned last week, was only politicking instead of resolving civic problems.
“No development work was carried out even in a single union council (UC) of Islamabad by the IMC under Aziz,” he claimed, adding, “It was the public who borne the brunt of his politics and slackness."
The departments were given back to the CDA to ensure the welfare of the citizens by fulfilling their water needs and timely lifting of garbage from sectoral areas, he said, adding that multiple projects languishing for over a decade were started.
Work on the Ghazi-Barotha water supply project will be initiated soon to resolve the water woes of the city residents, he said, adding that so far, the government had spent Rs1.5 billion on improving the capital's rural areas.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 12th, 2020.
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