Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz has given in-principle approval to the Rawalpindi Development Plan, initiating upgrades to the city’s water supply, sewerage systems, and rainwater harvesting.
The decision was revealed by Secretary Housing, Urban Development, and Public Health Engineering Noorul Amin Mengal during a meeting at the Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) office on Monday.
Mengal directed the Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA) to prepare PC-I documents for the planned schemes, drawing from the Punjab government’s successful upgrades in Lahore. He emphasized building ground storage for rainwater, using Parks and Horticulture Authority (PHA) parks as models, to save every drop of water.
Preparations for the monsoon season were ordered to be completed immediately, with a feasibility study for water from Daducha Dam targeted for completion within two months to boost city supply.
Wasa Managing Director Saleem Ashraf outlined a comprehensive monsoon plan, including rapid drain cleaning and setting up five monsoon camps with heavy machinery across Rawalpindi.
A main control room will operate from Wasa’s head office. New projects will add 12 million gallons daily (MGD) from Chahan Dam, five MGD from Rawal Dam, eight MGD from Khanpur Dam, and 35 MGD from Daducha Dam once feasible. Additionally, 20 new tubewells are being installed.
For sewerage, Mengal announced the Leh Nullah project, which will feature two-lane roads on both sides and a treatment plant to repurpose sewage for agriculture. Wasa has already exceeded its revenue target, recovering Rs. 2.6 billion against a Rs. 2.3 billion goal, with plans to increase this in the next fiscal year.
RDA Director General Kinza Murtaza briefed on the Rawalpindi Ring Road and Leh Nullah Expressway projects. Mengal, with prior experience as RDA director general in 2023, stressed speeding up work and warned against negligence.
He also halted RDA and Punjab Housing and Town Planning Agency (PHATA) from approving new housing schemes until the city’s master plan, nearing completion, is finalized, proposing a single civic body to monitor private housing societies.
These all authority consisting on Ollo I pathy..
Rain water harvesting should be made compulsory for the residents and government should give some incentives to those who install them.