RAWALPINDI   -   Provincial Minister for Local Government and Community Development, Zeeshan Rafique here on Tuesday said that zero waste would be ensured in cities and villages through, ‘Suthra’ Punjab programme.

Chairing a meeting held here in Commissioner Office regarding ‘Suthra’ Punjab the Minister said that the programme was launched on the directives of Chief Minister Punjab and it is a gift for the people.

Members of National and Provincial Assemblies, divisional administration officers, contractors and others attended the meeting. The officers concerned gave a briefing on the steps being taken by Rawalpindi Waste Management Company regarding ‘Suthra’ Punjab.

Zeeshan Rafiq said that environmental friendly sustainable measures are being taken under ‘Suthra’ Punjab programme. All the required resources are being provided by the Punjab Government, after which there should be no problem in ensuring 100 percent cleanliness.

He said that outsourcing of cleanliness and sanitation system in rural areas would ensure manual, mechanical sweeping, waste collection, drain cleaning and waste disposal. Local government department would monitor the outsourcing system digitally, he said.

The monitoring would include biometric attendance, vehicle tracking management system, vehicle weighing at dumping site, digital monitoring of the fleet and container clearance through geo-tagging and prompt resolution of the complaints, the minister informed.

At district level, a control room under the supervision of Assistant Commissioners is being built in the Deputy Commissioners Office and in each Tehsil, Zeeshan Rafiq said adding, to ensure full participation of the public in the sanitation system, an App ‘Saaf Rawalpindi’ and a toll-free number 1139 have been launched.

The citizens could get registered their complaints for which the contractor would be given two to three hours time to resolve them, he added.

So far, 17 Union Councils (UCs) across the division have been outsourced for ‘Suthra’ Punjab programme. The outsourcing is in progress in four UCs and pre-qualification have been completed.

The UCs which have completed the outsourcing process would enter the first operational phase before December 1, the minister was informed. 

The sanitation system would become operational in UCs where outsourcing is in process and a target of January 1, 2025 has been set in this regard.