Basic need: Govt to spend Rs5b on clean water project says CM

Clean water to be provided to people across the province in four years.

LAHORE:

Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif said on Thursday that the government had finalised a project to provide clean drinking water to the people. Over Rs5 billion have been allocated for the project in the current budget.

Talking to the head of an international company associated with providing clean drinking water, Sharif said that the government was planning to provide clean drinking water to people living throughout the province in the next four years.

He said that in the first phase, water filtration plants were being set up in various parts of the province while supply of potable water would be ensured to every citizen during the next four years. “The government will implement a comprehensive programme in this regard,” he said.

The CM said that installation of modern plants for the treatment of toxic industrial water was essential for a clean environment.

During the meeting, various projects for the treatment of industrial waste and clean drinking water came under discussion. The CM said that the Turkish company’s help in the treatment of industrial waste and provision of drinking water to people would be welcomed.

“Provision of clean water is the responsibility of the state and a target has been fixed to supply potable water to every citizen during the next four years,” he said, adding that the new project was of utmost importance as it was directly related to human health.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 20^th, 2014.