KARACHI - President Asif Ali Zardari held two separate meetings in Bilawal House here on Friday. In the first meeting, leading members of the stock exchange called on the President to discuss private sectors participation in the infrastructure projects. While in the other meeting, the Government officials briefed the President on the new city project of Zulfikarabad in Sindh. Briefing newsmen about the meetings, the spokesperson to the President Farhatullah Babar said that in the meeting with the private entrepreneurs the President urged the leading stock exchange members to make full use of the recently concluded currency swap agreement with China and other countries to enhance the countrys trade and for employment generation. The meeting was part of the series of brain storming sessions the President has been having with the entrepreneurs to discuss ways and means to enhance private sectors participation in the national development through raising local equity and participation, he said. The meeting was attended by Aqeel Dhehdy, Arif Habib, Arif Bokhari, Bashir Jan Muhammad, Nasir Bokhari, Muhammad Ali Taaba and Hussain Lawai among others besides senior federal and provincial officials. The President said that the private sector could beneficially invest in infrastructure projects on build, operate and own (BOO) basis by raising equity from the countrys stock exchanges. He said that infrastructure projects in communication sector were most feasible for such investment and asked the entrepreneurs to give the proposal a serious thought. Farhatullah Babar quoted the President as also asking the entrepreneurs to consider investing in the up-gradation of the Pak-Turkey railway line for fast cargo train service by raising funds from co-stock exchanges to open up new trade avenues for Pakistan with countries of the region. He said that Turkish leadership and investors had shown interest in the project, which the President said was proposed to be named after the Turkish President as 'Gul Train. He said that the meeting on Zulfikarabad was informed that bids for appointing management consultants for the new city had been received from five bidders and the selection of successful bidder would be finalised in the next month. The briefing was given by Fazalur Rahman the chief of the new city project. The briefing was attended by the CM Sindh Syed Qaim Ali Shah, Provincial Ministers Zulfiqar Mirza, Agha Siraj Durrani, Murad Ali Shah, Ayaz Soomro, Sharmila Farouqui, Special Assistant to PM on Water Kamal Majeedullah, Governor State Bank of Pakistan Shahid Kardar, President NBP and senior federal and provincial officials. The President directed that Expression of Interest (EOI) be invited at the earliest through international bidding from leading builders. He emphasised that the process of selection of builders and consultants should be carried out in a transparent and credible manner so that there was no room for any objection. Next meeting about the project will be held next month to take a decision about the site for the first phase of the new city project, Farhatullah Babar said.