Punjab Approves Rs. 16 Billion Development Projects

The Provincial Development Working Party (PDWP) on Wednesday approved seven development schemes and one position paper valued at nearly Rs. 16 billion, covering agriculture, livestock, healthcare, and tourism.

The meeting, chaired by Planning and Development Board Punjab Chairman Dr. Naeem Rauf, also cleared the Punjab Climate Resilient and Low Carbon Agriculture Mechanisation Project (P-CLAMP) for submission to the Central Development Working Party (CDWP).

The initiative carries an estimated cost of Rs. 36.12 billion and is aimed at promoting climate-smart farming practices. In the livestock sector, the PDWP gave the green light to several major projects.

These include the Herd Transformation to Enhance Livestock Productivity (Phase I) scheme at an estimated cost of Rs. 5.698 billion and the revised Livestock Card Project, budgeted at Rs. 3.409 billion. The Livestock Asset Transfer to Rural Women in South Punjab project, revised with an allocation of Rs. 2 billion, was also approved.

In healthcare, the meeting sanctioned the construction of the Punjab Healthcare Commission’s new head office in Lahore for Rs. 500 million and the expansion of critical care services, adding 150 ICU beds with ventilators in tertiary care hospitals across the province at a cost of Rs. 1 billion.

Tourism and heritage initiatives included a Rs. 3.692 billion master plan for the conservation and rehabilitation of the Lahore Museum. Additionally, a position paper for converting the TB Sanatorium Samli in Murree into a 350-bed general hospital received approval.