Daily Times

Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Political Affairs Dr Shahbaz Gill on Thursday said that the Punjab government generated Rs21.8 billion revenue from auction of only five plots of Central Business District (CBD) Lahore through bidding.

Addressing a press conference along Ravi Urban Development Authority Chief Imran Ameen, he said on the pattern of developed countries, the first CBD was being set up in Lahore. The project was being launched without any loan and it would generate Rs1,500 billion revenue for the Punjab government, he added.

He said the project would also help generate at least 250,000 new job opportunities. Shahbaz Gill said CBD and Ravi River Project were welfare projects of the incumbent government. Prime Minister Imran Khan was personally monitoring it, he added. He said physical work has already been started on it and stretched over 1,600 kanal prime land of Lahore. As many as five International companies including Turkey’s biggest company Big Arter participated in the bidding process, he added.

He said in the past prime state land in Lahore was auctioned at only Rs100 million per Kanal but now it was auctioned at Rs420 million per Kanal.

Shahbaz Gill said the authority set up for CBD would approve maps within 21 days. In the past, projects like Metro Bus and Orange Line Train were set up for which Rs12 billion per year subsidy was being given besides paying its loan installment. He said that CBD would also be set up in Faisalabad, Multan and Rawalpindi. The amount generated through these projects would be spent on welfare of the masses, he said.

Regarding provision of loans for the housing sector, the SAPM said a sum of Rs10 billion loan was disbursed among the people during the last three months. Earlier, the ratio of loan approval was merely 3.17 per cent which has now jumped to 40 per cent, he added. Similarly, the ratio of loan disbursement was only two percent which now has increased to 20 percent, he said.

Shahbaz Gill said a new policy about high-rise buildings would soon be introduced in the country in order to curtail unplanned expansion of cities. Responding to a question, he said infrastructure would be developed within 12 months.