Daily Times

Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar Tuesday said the four-lane 128 kms long Lilla-Jhelum road would connect GT Road with motorway while facilitating hundreds and thousands of daily commuters, besides creating job opportunities for locals.

According to handout issued here, he was addressing the foundation stone laying ceremony of Lilla-Jhelum dual-way at the PM Office.

Chief Minister Punjab extended felicitations to the residents of Jhelum, Pind Dadan Khan and Mandi Bahauddin over the project estimated to cost Rs 15 billion. He highlighted that the Rs. 33 billion Jalalpur irrigation project would usher in an era of development. Prime Minister Imran Khan had laid the foundation stone of this project two years ago, he added.

He said 1.75 lakh acres land in Jhelum and Khushab districts would be irrigated by this project along with the provision of clean drinking water to 26 villages.

He said the canal system of the Jalalpur irrigation project would be operational by June 2023, adding that 103 development schemes were being completed with Rs. 11.23 billion to develop the Jhelum district on modern lines.

While giving details of the development vision of the government, the CM said that 13 Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) road sector schemes were being started on the instructions of PM Imran Khan with an amount of Rs. 82.10 billion.

Similarly, four major roads of 506 kms length will be constructed with Asian Development Bank (ADB) assistance in Punjab with an amount of Rs.130 billion, he added.

The chief minister said historic 204 kms long Chichawatni, Rajana, Pir Mahal, Chowk Azam, Layyah and Taunsa roads’ construction was being started with the assistance of the Asian Development Bank. Similarly, construction of 107 kms long Jhang-Shorkot road would also be started soon, he added.

Alongside, construction of 75-kms long Hasilpur to Bahawalnagar road would be started soon and construction of 150 kms long Depalpur, Pakpattan, Vehari road was also a part of this programme, he added.

The CM said 174 schemes of construction of total 1206 kms length roads, with an amount of 15 billion rupees, were completed in the first phase of the Naya Pakistan Manzil-e-Asaan project.

As many as 154 schemes of construction and repair of 1076 kms long roads would be soon completed with Rs. 14.5 billion in the second phase of this programme, he continued.

Meanwhile, 1785 schemes of roads construction and repair in the current ADP will also be completed with Rs. 379.31 billion, he added.

However, the Chief Minister regretted that no attention was paid to roads maintenance in the past and as a result, the condition of one lakh kilometre long roads network was worsened.

The incumbent government was going to start 13 projects in PPP mode, he said. Work will be started on Multan-Vehari road, Sargodha-Faisalabad road while work was in progress speedily on the Sheikhupura-Gujranwala road project, he added. Third-party validation of every ADP project will be done and schemes will be completed on time.

Chief Minister Buzdar said under the leadership of Prime Minister Imran Khan the ‘journey of development’ will continue and the country would continue to move forward to achieve prosperity.