RDA to prepare feasibility for Ring Road SEZ

The Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) was directed on Monday to prepare a feasibility report for the proposed Special Economic Zones (SEZs) along the Ring Road project.

This was directed by the Rawalpindi Commissioner Muhammad Mehmood on Monday, who stated that the Ring Road was just another thoroughfare, but a multifaceted project, which will help resolve the traffic and economic problems of the city by boosting industry and creating jobs.

Mehmood expressed these views while presiding over a meeting on the Ring Road project at his office. The meeting was also attended by RDA Director Finance and Planning Nazia Parveen Sudhan, Ring Road Project Director Muhammad Abdullah, RDA officers and other relevant officials.

The commissioner said that they were already consulting with the Rawalpindi and Islamabad chambers of commerce and industries regarding the SEZs, adding that the cooperation with the business community of the twin cities will continue at all stages of developing the feasibility report.

He stated that the revenue department had completed a survey of the land acquired for the project. Now, the process for delimitation and identification of the land was underway.

The chief commissioner directed the revenue authorities to expedite the process.

He added that the draft for an agreement with the National Highway Authority (NHA) to build the road and connect it to the overall China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) was being reviewed. Mehmood noted that by connecting to CPEC, the importance of the project will increase manifold.

He said that there was a plan to buy land in and around the loops of interchanges of the project, adding that the government can use them for commercial purposes to further increase their revenue.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 15^th, 2020.