KARACHI, July 18: The Defence Housing Authority (DHA) has earmarked a record amount of Rs2.9 billion for multifaceted uplift works in its annual budget for the fiscal 2006-07.

This was stated by DHA Administrator Brig Maqsood Hussain while presenting the salient features of the housing authority's budget before the DHA executive board.

A meeting of DHA's executive board chaired by Commander 5 Corps and the president of the board, Lt-Gen Ahsan Azhar Hayat was held at the Defence Housing Authority's main office here on Tuesday to approve the budget.

The DHA administrator said that the Defence Housing Authority had adopted an aggressive strategy based on a three-pronged approach to ensure speedy and substantial development activity in the DHA.

He elaborated that the development strategy was based on unleashing simultaneous work on refurbishment and up-gradation of services in the old phases, fast track development of phase-VIII and enhancement of civic amenities with special emphasis on traffic-ability improvement measures as suggested by the Nespak.

The administrator said that Rs1.5 billion had been kept for speedy infrastructure and services development of phase-VIII while Rs350 million had been separately earmarked for initial consultancy and survey work of 12,000 acres DHA-II land being developed astride Super Highway. The executive board approved in principal that some renowned private developer be tasked to undertake the development of DHA-II in accordance with a futuristic master plan.

Corps Commander Lt-Gen Azhar Hayat directed the DHA to focus all its energies and resources towards the improvement of the quality of life of its residents by providing them modern living environments.

The DHA administrator announced that the DHA Phase-II extension would very soon be opened for construction, which would unleash a new era of development and progress in the area.

He revealed that the DHA was actively contemplating to start a modern coaster service within the DHA to facilitate the residents and to put an end to the degradation of the environment by smoke emitting public transport in the vicinity.

The executive board was informed that the development projects to be started this year in the DHA included construction of flyover at Khayaban-i-Hafiz, upgrading of Zamzama and Stadium Commercial Areas, widening and upgrading of major roads, installation of new street lights at Beach Avenue, Khayaban-i-Shahbaz and Khayaban-i-Mujahid and construction of sewerage treatment plant (STP) in various phases of the DHA.

The executive board also accorded permission for the establishment of an Oral Cancer Treatment Hospital in DHA Phase-VIII.

Corps Commander Lt-Gen Azhar Hayat in his concluding remarks asked the DHA to ensure transparency and timely completion of all the uplift projects by ensuring versatile monitoring and supervision of the projects.--PPI