LAHORE – Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif said on Friday that a separate police system would be introduced for controlling traffic on the Lahore Ring Road (LRR), besides setting up of an economic development zone.
Presiding over a high-level meeting of the Lahore Ring Road Authority, Shahbaz said that the development work on the southern loop of the LRR would soon start, while the separate police force would be operational from December 25.
Shahbaz informed the meeting, which also approved the LRR’s budget for the year 2012-13, that the development work on the southern loop of the LRR would start after dividing it into various portions.
The chief minister passed directions for expeditiously completing the process of acquiring land for this loop. He also ordered for computerisation of the toll collection system at the northern loop, and formulation of an effective business plan to generate resources for the project.
Shahbaz said that setting up of an economic development zone was of utmost significance for the promotion of financial and business activities at the LRR. He constituted a committee headed by chairman of the Planning and Development Department for preparing a master plan of the zone. The committee will also consist of secretaries of different departments, representatives of the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) and members of the Punjab Investment Board (PIB).
The meeting was also attended by Board of Revenue senior member; inspector general of police (IGP); secretaries of the Finance, Forests, Planning and Development, and Communication and Works Departments; PIB vice chairman; Lahore Division commissioner; Lahore Development Authority (LDA) director general; Water and Sanitation Agency (Wasa) managing director; and National Logistic Cell (NLC) and Nespak authorities.
Separately, Shahbaz Sharif said on Friday that the modern sanitation system introduced by the Turkish companies in Lahore would also be extended to other big cities of Punjab, including Faisalabad, Gujranwala, Multan, Rawalpindi and Sialkot.
Talking to a representative delegation of Turkish companies that have made investments in the transport and solid waste management sectors, Shahbaz said that as a result of the steps taken by the Punjab government in collaboration with the Turkish companies, a marked improvement was visible in sanitary conditions. He specially praised the arrangements made by these companies to keep Lahore clean during the Eid holidays.
The chief minister directed the officers concerned to submit within a week the recommendations on introducing the modern cleanliness system in these cities. He said that Pakistan could earn huge foreign exchange by recycling the offal of animals if planning was done in this regard. “In many countries, a system exists to recycle offal of animals instead of wasting it,” he added.
Shahbaz called on Turkish companies to make investment in the processing projects of animal offal. He also called for making short- and medium-term plans for producing energy from the waste.
The members of the delegation included Bin Yamin of Al-Bayrak, and Zafar Muhibbi and Ismat of Ozpak. while Lahore Waste Management Company Chairman Khawaja Ahmad Hasaan and other senior officials were also present on the occasion.