ISLAMABAD: Despite receiving only a nominal allocation in this year’s budget, the Capital Development Authority (CDA) has decided to launch the long-delayed sewage treatment plants (STPs) project aimed at stopping the flow of untreated sewage into Rawal Dam.

After receiving bids, the CDA is close to completing the technical evaluation process before opening the financial bids for the award of the multi-billion-rupee contracts.

“Soon we will complete the bidding process,” a CDA official said.

“We are going to execute this project with the allocated funding, and we will try to get additional funds from the federal government to complete it within the stipulated time,” he said.

Technical evaluation of bids nears completion as authority hopes for additional federal funds

The official further said that four companies are in the race for the contract.

The project, which involves the construction of three sewage treatment plants to treat wastewater flowing into the Korang River and other streams, was proposed several years ago. However, only limited funds have been allocated every year, and the project has yet to be formally launched.

According to budget documents, the total cost of the project is Rs6.07 billion, while the federal government has earmarked Rs449 million for the fiscal year 2026-27. The level of funding suggests that even if the project is launched in the current fiscal year, its completion will take considerable time.

Under the plan, the CDA will install three STPs in the catchment area to prevent contaminated water from entering Rawal Dam. The plants are planned for Lower Shahdara, Bari Imam and near Banigala. In the absence of these facilities, untreated sewage from unplanned settlements in the catchment area continues to flow into the reservoir.

In recent years, the CDA reportedly invited bids for the project on several occasions but later scrapped the process.

The CDA executes two types of projects, including those financed through its own funds and those funded by the federal government under the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP). The STPs project is a federally funded project, and without the required funding, it cannot be completed with the limited budgetary allocation. As a result, the project is likely to face further delays. However, the CDA is expecting additional funding from the federal government during the current fiscal year and full funding in the fiscal year 2027-28.

Like the STPs project, another PSDP-funded project, 10th Avenue, has also faced delays for several years. The Rs10.2 billion project was launched in 2022 with a completion period of two years.

However, due to funding issues, work has remained unattended halfway through. The federal government did not allocate any funds for the project in the previous or the current fiscal year. As a result, the project has been halted after around 50 per cent completion.

Sources said the CDA is again planning to persuade the federal government to provide funds for the project, otherwise, the authority will complete it on its own.

“In recent years, we completed our own-funded projects in record time. But yes, these two projects are facing inordinate delays, and the delays are linked to federal government funding,” a CDA official said.

Published in Dawn, July 13th, 2026