Punjab Minister for Local Government and Community Development (LG&CD) department ZeeshanRafique has pledged that all ongoing World Bank-funded schemes under Punjab Municipal Development Fund Company (PMDFC) will be completed by March 2025. PMDFC is working on municipal services projects in 16 cities including Daska, Hafizabad, Jhelum, Kamonke, Muridke, Wazirabad, Gojra, Jaranwala, Jhang, Kamalia, Okara, Bahawalpur, Borewala, Khanewal, KotAddu and Wahari in a transparent manner, which will significantly improve the quality of life there.
He was speaking in a briefing by Managing Director Syed Zahid Aziz during a visit to the PMDFC office, here. The minister expressed his happiness that PMDFC was the oldest company of the Punjab government which had been playing an important role in providing municipal services in different areas for last twenty-five years. He said that it was gratifying that as a pilot project, traditional ponds in the selected villages were being cleaned using modern techniques. Phase-wise cleaning of the polluted ponds is not only promoting aquatic life but also providing water for local agricultural purposes, he said. The minister emphasized measures to increase capacity building of municipal committees because the lack of efficiency of some municipal committees was hindering the timely completion of development schemes. He said that the problem of sewage needed more attention than solid waste management. Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif wants all drains to be repaired and cleaned in a phased manner, the minister added. He directed that sewage projects should be prepared keeping in mind the needs of the next fifty years. He said that in view of the serious sewage problems in Jhang city, work was going on there on priority basis. ZeeshanRafiq directed PMDFC to take concrete steps to solve the sewage problems at Daska city, pointing out that the problems of sewage and sanitation, especially in small towns, were very painful and needed immediate attention. He said that due to the special interest of Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif, the Punjab government would release Rs.500 million in the next annual development program.
I will also talk to the Chief Minister for arranging large-scale foreign funding too, vowed Mr. Rafique. Appreciating the solarisation schemes of disposal stations and parks under PMDFC, the provincial minister said that they had more focus on solid waste segregation projects. PMDFC Managing Director Syed Zahid Aziz told the meeting that land has been identified for the treatment of sewage water schemes in 9 cities of Punjab. The company is shifting to e-governance in a phase wise manner and will run a mass campaign to create awareness about public projects, he said. Moreover, he said that citizens could lodge their complaint online on the Baldiya app. The app also has a voice message facility for illiterate people. General Manager Institutional Development Mahmood Masood Tamannah briefed the provincial minister on e-governance initiatives.
