SIALKOT-Expansion work started at the Nullah Dek near Pasrur to fourfold increase its capacity from 3,000 cusecs to 13,000 cusecs.
Deputy Commissioner Dr Farrukh Naveed inaugurated the project near Noorpur Siphon, Pasrur tehsil. He said that the course of the floodwater would be diverted to the MR-Link Canal near Pasrur and towards the River Ravi.
Talking to the newsmen here, the DC said that the Punjab government was spending Rs5 billion on this mega project, under which the Nllah Dek would be widened from Noorpur Siphon to the banks of Rive Ravi.
He said that the capacity of water in Nullah Dek would be increased to 13,000 cusec from existing 3,000 cusec by removing the encroachments in this Nullah besides adding additional land in it at various places to save hundreds of villages and their population from recurring flood disasters.
He said that Rs2 billion would be paid to those land owners whose land would be acquired for this purpose. He said that the work would complete before the start of the rainy and flood season in 2018. He said that under the project, the course of the floodwater in Nullah Dek would be diverted to the Marala-Ravi-Link (MR-Link) Canal and the River Ravi in a bid to save the hundreds of the villages in Sialkot, Narowal and Gujranwala districts from flood disasters.
CEP sets up counters to
educate voters
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has established special counters to raise public awareness of voting in coming general elections.
According to the ECP officials, the female voters' turnout remained very low in Gujranwala Division's Sialkot, Narowal, Gujrat, Mandi Bahauddin, Hafizabad and Gujranwala districts during the 2013 general elections due to the certain reasons.
The officials said that now the ECP was making efforts to ensure maximum increase in the female voters' turnout with the active cooperation of media and social activists. NADRA was also moving its mobile vans to the rural areas for the issuance of the CNICs to the women, they said.
The ECP officials said that vote is the trust of the nation and every voter should cast their vote in the nation interest. They added that the ECP had established special counters at all the government offices in the region. The special forms have been provide to ensure the registration of the new voters and change in the voters' data as well, they said.
DRIVE: Cleanliness in all the villages and 124 rural union councils would be completed till Dec 10 under the Punjab Chief Minister's Saaf Dehaat Programme.
Chairperson Hina Arshad stated this while talking to the newsmen after reviewing the progress of the ongoing campaign in Sialkot villages.
She said that the District Council Sialkot provided Rs0.1 million as special funds each to all the 124 rural union councils (UCs) in Sialkot, Daska, Sambrial and Pasrur tehsils for this project to ensure cleanliness everywhere in every UC with the active public participation.
She announced to convert Pasrur tehsil's village Qila Kalarwala as a model developed village by allocating Rs10 million development funds.