LAHORE: Caretaker Chief Minister Punjab Mohsin Naqvi on Tuesday laid the foundation stone of Rs 3.10 billion Akbar Chowk underpass and flyover project and directed to complete it within 90 days.
The project, spanning a remarkable 700 meters for the flyover and 540 meters for the underpass, was designed to accommodate two lanes of traffic each day, serving the needs of commuters from Faisal Town, Johar Town, Kot Lakhpat, and other localities. The DG LDA provided a comprehensive briefing to the CM, detailing the project’s key features and benefits. It is worth noting that transparent tendering process had yielded notable cost savings, amounting to crores of rupees. During a media interaction, the CM said that an agreement had been finalized with the PCB regarding the procurement of lighting equipment. In order to curtail significant expenses in future, the decision was made to refrain from renting the lights. He highlighted that a colossal sum of Rs 600 million was expended on renting lights last year alone, while this year, the cost amounted to Rs 500 million.
Mohsin Naqvi stated that elections would take place whenever they were ordered, and he made it clear that he did not engage in any vindictive acts. “We anticipated that there would be numerous arrests, resulting in the transfer of some detainees to jails in other cities”. However, he emphasized that he would not allow any Lahore projects to be stalled because he was a proud citizen of Lahore.
He also instructed that Akbar Chowk project be completed in 90 days rather than the originally scheduled four months. The project design was inherited from the previous government and was not modified; it had only been launched, and they would try to finish it as soon as possible. He also recognized that, after the Akbar Chowk project, remodelling of the next Chowk was necessary to maintain traffic flow.
The CM maintained that expenditures on the proposed horse and cattle show were too high, and there were no sponsors to shoulder the expenses. He noted that the cost of Rs 900 million was far too high, especially since there were no sponsors to help offset the expenses. On the other hand, Jashan-e-Baharan event was able to take place thanks to the support of sponsors, and the government did not have to allocate any funds towards it, he added.
He stressed the importance of prioritizing the completion of ongoing projects and added that projects that could be finished quickly would receive special attention. For example, the CBD Kalma Chowk remodelling project was scheduled to be completed by March 23, and assistance would also be provided to ensure the timely completion of cantonment underpass near Quaid-e-Azam Interchange. However, traffic issues persist due to encroachments, and Commissioner Lahore was actively working to address this problem, he stated and reminded the Lahore Development Authority of its responsibility to ensure that private housing schemes were equipped with the necessary facilities.
Provincial Ministers- SM Tanveer, Ibrahim Hasan Murad, Azfar Ali Nasir, secretary information,
commissioner and CCPO Lahore, and others were also present.