RAWALPINDI: Commissioner retired Rawalpindi Capt Mohammad Mehmood has said PC-I for Bhabra Bazaar food street project has been finalised and steps are being taken to get it approved.

On the other hand, the Walled City of Lahore Authority (WCLA) has estimated the cost of rehabilitation of Sujan Singh Haveli at Rs152.5 million.

This cost is being reviewed and efforts are underway to reduce it.

He said this while presiding over a meeting at the Rawalpindi Metropolitan Corporation (RMC). The aim of rehabilitating Bhabra Bazaar food street and Sujan Singh Haveli is to preserve the city’s historical essence and expose the young generation to it.

He said old houses and temples in the vicinity of both places will be restored under the project, adding that seven temples were located within 1km of the haveli.

An art gallery and museum will also be established in Sujan Singh Haveli.

He said auction of all perilous vehicles of RMC had been completed as per the rules and after approval from the local government department, new vehicles will be procured with this amount. Maintenance of defective vehicles is high and difficult, henceforth they have been auctioned keeping legal requirements under consideration.

Iesco has begun survey of streetlights in Khayaban-i-Sir Syed which will be completed by the end of February, following which electricity bills will be reduced, he said, adding that concrete samples from the under-construction secretariat site of RMC have been sent to the University of Engineering and Technology to assess strength of the structure.

Other issues of the corporation were also discussed in the meeting. RMC Chief Officer Ali Abbas Bukhari and other officers were also present in the meeting.

Published in Dawn, February 1st, 2021