KARACHI, July 29: Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz has approved setting up a sewerage treatment plant for Karachi at a cost of Rs8 billion which would be jointly funded by federal and provincial governments for treating more than 300 million gallons of untreated sewage passing through Karachi and falling into sea every day.

He was presiding over a meeting in which he was given a presentation on development projects at the Governor’s House. It was attended by Governor Sindh Ishratul Ibad Khan, City Nazim Mustafa Kamal, Naib City Nazim Nasreen Jalil, Chief Secretary and senior officers.

Syed Mustafa Kamal said currently 173 projects are under way, including construction of eight underpasses, revamping of water lines and construction of a 800-car parking plazas in Saddar at a cost of Rs20 billion, and water lines are being revamped.

The prime minister appreciated the commitment of city administration in building infrastructure for Karachi and said low cost of production, availability of skilled manpower and improvement in law and order situation would turn Karachi into a destination of choice for local and foreign investment.

He said economic potential of Karachi cannot be leveraged without attracting sizeable foreign investment.

The provincial and city governments must make all out efforts to establish its brand and improve its image.Commenting on the need for hosing for low-income groups, the Prime Minister said that unless a city adequately prepares itself for planned low-cost housing, there is no way of preventing the emergence of katchi abadis.

The City Nazim also gave a briefing on the 46-storey IT Call Centre. In addition to being the tallest building in the country, it would be earthquake-resistant and would have solar panels fixed all round it, thus enabling it to generate 1.2MW per day.—PPI