BoP to provide Rs10b for LDA apartments project

LAHORE:

The Lahore Development Authority (LDA) has signed a Rs10 billion agreement with the Bank of Punjab (BoP) for financing the construction of 4,000 residential apartments under the LDA City Naya Pakistan Apartments project.

Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar chaired the agreement-signing ceremony which was held at the Chief Minister’s Secretariat on Wednesday. LDA Director General Ahmed Aziz Tarar and BoP Chairman Zafar Masood signed the agreement for constructing 4,000 residential apartments under the flagship project of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).

Under the agreement, the bank will provide financial resources for the construction of residential apartments under the LDA City Naya Pakistan Apartments projects over an area of 800 kanals.

The LDA will construct and allot apartments through balloting and will also be responsible for the maintenance of building infrastructure. The bank will receive applications, issue letters of comfort to expected allottees along with the provision of soft loans to successful applicants under Islamic mortgage financing. The project amount will be ring-fenced.

Addressing the agreement signing ceremony, Buzdar highlighted that it is the vision of Prime Minister Imran Khan to provide a roof to the shelterless which is being materialised by the Punjab government as banks and the public sector have teamed up to provide residential facilities to the common man.

He underscored that this historic agreement will pave the way for a new culture to help the needy through mortgage financing. It is satisfying that the LDA has planned to construct 35,024 apartments over an area of 8,500 kanals in three years at Mouza Halloke adjoining Ring Road, he said.

The chief minister also revealed that a planning proposal (PC-I) worth Rs20 billion has been approved for the provision of necessary infrastructure, including the construction of roads, sewerage, the supply of water and electricity etc. Similarly, he added that another PC-I of Rs10 billion has also been approved to construct 4,000 apartments in the first phase.

These apartments will be booked on a 10% down payment and the rest of the payment will be made in instalments.

He said a consortium, comprising of Bank of Punjab Bank, Habib Bank, Faisal Bank, Bank Alfalah, UBL, Meezan Bank and National Bank has been formed to provide a mortgage financing facility.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 25^th, 2021.