A meeting was held under the chair of Chief Minister Punjab Chaudhry Parvez Elahi to review Nullah Lai Expressway and Ring Road projects in Rawalpindi. Provincial Minister Mohammad Basharat Raja, former P&D chairman Salman Ghani, Principal Secretary to CM Mohammad Khan Bhatti, SMBR, chairman P&D, secretaries of C&W, housing, finance depts and commissioner Rawalpindi attended the meeting while DCs of Rawalpindi, Attock and DG RDA participated through video link. While directing to start work on these projects without delay, the CM noted with satisfaction that about 64 billion rupees have been saved in the Nullah Lai Expressway project as its outlay was estimated at 110 billion rupees in the previous tenure. Now, the Nullah Lai Expressway would be completed at 46 billion rupees. The saving of public money and transparency should be ensured while executing the Rawalpindi Ring Road project; he stressed and added that the people's convenience should also be kept in mind. Public interest should reign supreme instead of acclimating adjoining land owners' stakes; the CM conveyed and repeated that early completion of both schemes should be ensured for the convenience of the Rawalpindiites. Other roads will also be constructed and revamped in Rawalpindi to resolve the traffic problems and the proposal of building houses for the poor affected by projects would also be weighed up, he opined. The government is also going to initiate a water supply scheme for Rawalpindiites and those living in Murree tehsil to provide clean drinking water; he disclosed and maintained that stopping a water scheme for the people of Murree is criminal negligence. Earlier, the CM was briefed that the Nullah Lai Expressway will be built for only 46 billion instead of 110 billion.
