MCL to liven Lahore up

Work to begin on ongoing development schemes as well as new ones

LAHORE:

The Metropolitan Corporation Lahore (MCL) will give the provincial capital some uplift with the construction and repair of main roads and streets across the city at a cost of Rs7.29 billion.

Lahore Deputy Commissioner and Administrator Umar Sher Chatha has prepared the route map.

Work will start on ongoing development schemes and new schemes at the appointed time. On October 18, 2021, on the orders of the Supreme Court, all the local bodies of Punjab were restored under the law of 2013.

Under the Local Government Act 2013, like other districts, the former Mayor of Lahore Metropolitan Corporation, Col. (Retd.) Mubashir Javed, prepared a budget of nine months instead of twelve for the year 2021-22. Rs7.29 billion was set aside for non-development budget while over Rs900 million was set aside for development.

More than Rs200 million has been spent since October 18 so far.

Most of the money has been spent on ongoing development schemes. Former Mayor Col. (Retd.) Mubashir Javed has called for tenders for streetlights and various development projects to use more than Rs290 million in development schemes for annual development works.

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Streetlights were purchased to illuminate the city’s streets, but work could not be started on other development projects. The Local Government Department has sought the files of all development projects, but no decision has been taken yet.

An amount of Rs7.29 billion was allocated in terms of non-development budget out of which more than Rs2.5 billion has been spent so far.

The amount allocated for ongoing development schemes was over Rs900 million for which work was to be started, but on most of which work has not been started yet, which is a lack of interest on the part of the Metropolitan Corporation Lahore officials.

In this regard, The Administrator and Deputy Commissioner of Lahore, Omar Sher Chatha, said that providing all facilities of municipal services to the people of Lahore was among the top priority. The city of Lahore would be made green and beautiful.

The streets, road and highways of the provincial capital would be built and repaired. The work of installing streetlights has started on a fast pace. There will be a lot of work on the city’s infrastructure.

The Model Rehri Bazaars should be activated at three places of the city -- Q Block Model Town, Shadman and Lal Bridge -- so that encroachments can be stopped. The LDA will work with Wasa and PHA for the convenience of the citizens. Work is being started on time with funds allocated for development work.

The task of providing permanent services in the provincial capital and to stop illegal constructions will definitely be a challenge to the administrator of the Metropolitan Corporation of Lahore. When the Commissioner of Lahore, Captain Muhammad Usman, had a survey done about illegal constructions, the result showed hundreds of such constructions.

On such revelations the former secretary of local government, Noorul Amin Mengal, had issued orders for the demolition of all such buildings, but only two buildings could be demolished.

A few other buildings were partially demolished so that they could be officially referred to as examples of work being done.

Buildings constructed against the bylaws have become a challenge for the Punjab government as well as for the Local Government Department.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 15^th, 2022.