(Karachi) Prime Minister Imran Khan has said that Ravi Riverfront Urban Development Projectwill provide affordable housing opportunity to poor people.
Speaking at the groundbreaking ceremony of the mega scheme in Sheikhupura on Tuesday, the PM said that the previous governments did not take measures to facilitate the poor segments of the society. "At least 40 percent people in Lahore are poor and none of the rulers did anything for their welfare," he stated.
He said this project is actually a great example of infrastructural reforms. Imran said, "I can visualize Naya Pakistan through this project."
The PM pointed out the Ravi Riverfront Urban Development Project will provide employment to 1.2 million people.
"The previous governments just used to build flyovers and underpasses and called that infrastructural development," he highlighted. "The rulers of the past pushed the country into debts."
The prime minister said that Rs30 billion subsidy has been given in the housing sector for the poor. For the first time, people are being given the opportunity to make their home. He said that to give relief to the poor, we first introduced health cards.
Ravi Riverfront Urban Development Project will be built over an area of more than 100,000 acres of land with the private sector investment of Rs5,000 billion.
As part of the scheme, 12 new cities, including residential city, medical city, downtown, commercial hub, urban farms etc will be developed in the first phase with Innovation City spanning over 1,370 acres in the second phase.
In the third phase, Knowledge City, Sports City and Eco City will be built on a land area of 14,000 acres. A total land area of 103,271 acres will be acquired from public and government control for the development of the project.
Similarly, at least six wastewater treatment plants, three barrages and urban forest would also be developed during the first three years of the scheme.