Daily Times

Leading architects, cultural, heritage and environmental experts and a large number of civil society representatives have strongly opposed the government’s ‘Ravi Riverfront Urban Development Project’ while terming it a disaster for the natural flow of river and ecological balance. Lahore Conservation Society has written a letter to Prime Minister Imran Khan having signatures of leading architects of the country to halt this project. Around five dozens experts from historical National College of Arts (NCA) are also signatories to this plea made to the PM. FHQ & Associates, Pakistan Green Building Council, Nayyar Ali Dada & Associates and Hara Bhara Pakistan are to name few who have appealed to the PM to halt the project.

Moreover, the Institute of Architects Pakistan (IAP) has also written a letter to Chief Minster Punjab while raising serious environmental and social implications of the Ravi Riverfront Urban Development project being planned on both banks of the River by the Punjab government. According to the letter written to CM Punjab, the project study was conceived in 2013-2014 by a consultant whose vision was to channelize 46 km length the river from Siphon up to its confluence with Hudaira Drain and appropriate the 120,000 acres of land along the flood plain for urban development. The project cost was envisaged as $7.5 Billion. The project was shelved due to the financial constraints and the 3rd Phase of project “Detailed Design & Development of Procurement Documents” was halted. However, Lahore Development Authority has prepared a PC-II and advertised this project again for ‘Preparing a Strategic Development Plan and detailed feasibilities’ and ‘Detail design and procurement documents’.

“We draw your attention to the fact that it is indeed heartening to see your interest in development of Lahore, providing low income housing to its citizens and improving its facilities along with greening of Lahore, however, the concept as proposed in LDA’s study of channelizing a river goes against principles of sustainable development and it will destroy the little ecological balance that has been left of the river and its flood plains. The project does not take into account the environmental impact that it will have on the environment and the ecology. This appears to be an unfeasible project both from an environmental, social and economic perspective,” the letter said. An Asian Development Bank funded study has a focus on sustainable development keeping in view environmental and ecological concerns. The proposal is that out of the 120,000 acres outlined in the LDA Proposal 25000 acres that fall within the 20 year flood line should be converted into a National Park maintaining the rivers current natural route with grasslands and forests on both banks of the Ravi purely for nature based recreational purposes. This will also strengthen the prime ministers policy of greening, forestation and open up affordable land for low income housing. It also added that all future development should follow the proposals outlined in the Lahore Master Plan currently under preparation.

The civil society also urged the government to restore the river landscape to natural conditions. They said that the river banks must be maintained in their original state and the land prone to the 1 in 20 year flooding be declared as National Park for public use and can be used for recreational purposes with low level landscaping that will not be damaged by the occasional flooding of the river. Tourism and limited compatible economic activities can be considered in this zone. LDA should consider lower cost interventions with limited engineering works as opposed to very large-scale river training works at public expense in view of limited financial resources, it added. The reduced flow of water of the Ravi (due to the diversion of waters by India) primarily carries the sewage of Lahore particularly in the dry season. The establishment of wastewater treatment plants in the city by WASA will improve the quality of water downstream. LDA and WASA should focus on efforts to revitalize the river water through supplying treated cleaner sewage water and cleaning up the original urban storm water nullahs which are currently carrying raw sewage and rehabilitating the areas along them, they demanded.

Meanwhile, in letter written to the Prime Minster, the civil society has said that the project is unsustainable from all fronts including environmental, ecological and financial while its concept is against all the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN-SDGs) to which Pakistan is a signatory, and is in violation of the Lahore High Court orders. The Lahore Master Plan 2040 is yet to be completed and no project should be initiated till such time the Master Plan recommendations are in place, it added. Raising the concerns over the project, they said that the land cost along the river embankment will be beyond the paying capacity of the population as the cost of development works will be exceptionally high.

Talking to Daily Times, one of the leading architects of Pakistan and former Principal of NCA Prof Fauzia Husain Qureshi, said that this project will be complete disaster for Lahore and its people as it will destroy the ecological balance. According to Qureshi, who is also a signatory to the letters written to PM and CM, the land mafia is behind this multi-billion project who wants to acquire the prime agriculture land from poor farmers on nominal prices in connivance with the government. A huge sum of money in the form of kickbacks is involved in such projects and therefore the government is going for it in haste, she said. “This project is in contradiction with the Clean Green Pakistan initiative of the Prime Minister and therefore it must be halted and the government should instead focus of providing affordable housing to the masses that it promised in its manifesto,” she emphasized, while terming the project as rubbish.

“Civil society is not anti-development as we are pro-poor and demand responsible development ensuring judicious use of our money in prioritizing returns and benefits to the majority of the population. We are addressing the long term benefits of development and protecting people rights and ensuring people are not cheated,” she concluded.