KARACHI, May 24: Provincial minister for housing and town planning Dewan Yousuf Farooqui presided over a high-level pre-budget meeting of different development agencies and departments here on Thursday and directed the officials to include low cost housing schemes in their programmes in the forthcoming budget with the help of private sector.

The meeting decided that the projects would be initiated in Karachi, Hyderabad, Sukkur and Nawabshah, whereas it would be extended to other parts of the province to facilitate the common man.

Officials from city district government Karachi, the defunct KDA, Lyari Development Authority, Malir Development Authority, Larkana Development Authority, KBCA and Hyderabad Development Authority attended the meeting.

A number of schemes pertaining to these departments and agencies were reviewed, while director-general of the Lyari Development Authority was asked to ensure early commencement of work on a road from beach avenue to Hawkesbay. The Lyari Development Authority chief informed the meeting about different housing schemes at Hawkesbay, including the scheme 42.

The potentials of beaches in Karachi cannot be harnessed without completion of these projects, the minister stressed.—PPI