GUJRAT: The local administration, in collaboration with the Gujrat Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GtCCI), has launched a fresh effort to establish the phase II of the industrial estate for which the business community has been striving for the last almost three decades.

A six-member search committee has been constituted by Deputy Commissioner Dr Khurram Shahzad, headed by Assistant Commissioner (AC) Muhammad Jameel. GtCCI President Soban Zaheer Butt, former presidents Ali Ansar Ghumman and Aamir Numan, Tehsildar Sohail Rizwan and district officer Zaheer Ahmed have been nominated as its members.

Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid MNA Chaudhry Moonis Elahi has also reportedly issued directions to the administration and contacted the authorities in the provincial government to establish the second phase of the industrial estate.

A senior administrative officer told Dawn the search committee had been tasked with selecting a suitable location preferably along the proposed route for the recently approved Gujrat-Dinga bypass road to be built with Rs7bn by the federal government from the Chenab bridge to Dinga road, through the Shadiwal town and Gujrat-Sargodha road. He was of the view that the route would be a dual carriageway with an easy access to the GT Road as well as the Sialkot-Lahore motorway would be around 30km from it but the committee could identify any other suitable option as well.

DC forms a six members search committee under AC to look for suitable land

Currently, hundreds of the industrial units are operational in the residential localities of Railway Road, Chah Tarehng, Shahdaula Road and other areas of the city, causing pollution and other risks for the residents as the existing industrial estate was filled up to its capacity more than 30 years ago.

The process of establishing the second phase of the Gujrat industrial estate area was first started in 1992 when a huge chunk of private land was selected near Channi Hafiz (Deona) along the GT Road; however, the project was shelved after a decade due to a resistance and litigation by the local landholders.

In 2004, the then district nazim initiated the process again, this time along Gujrat-Bhimbher Road near Mehsam where the land, mainly owned by the government departments, was available for setting up the industrial estate but the business community was reluctant to have such a facility in that area as it was far away from the national highway.

In 2015-16, the local administration, for the third time, selected land near Sheikh Sukha village along Gujrat-Sargodha Road which was just three kilometers from the GT Road bypass. The provincial government then told the administration to raise funds for the project with contributions from the local businessmen but matter has been in doldrums for the last couple of years.

Now again Gujrat Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GtCCI) president Soban Zaheer Butt and other office-bearers held a meeting with Deputy Commissioner Dr Khurram Shahzad and apprised him of the difficulties being faced by the local businessmen due to the lack of space for industrial growth.

At the, the DC formed the above mentioned committee tasked with the job to search for the land.

Published in Dawn, November 19th, 2019