LAHORE, April 12: Private contractors on Saturday suffered the biggest shock of their lives when the Data Ganj Bakhsh Town Council unanimously decided to entrust execution of 80 per cent of its development works to the National Logistic Cell.

The town council took the major policy decision at an extraordinary session held at the Jinnah Hall with Naib Nazim Mian Muhammad Usman in chair. Town Nazim Khwaja Ahmed Hassaan said that private contractors would be allotted 20 per cent of the total development works for ensuring healthy competition.

He said that the council had approved the proposal to get the development works executed through the NLC on account of the outstanding quality of roads and other development works completed by it during its third session. The decision, however, could not be implemented because the NLC wanted 10 per cent premium on the Schedule of Rates.

He said that the NLC had finally agreed to execute development projects on rates in accordance with the Schedule of Rates and the extraordinary session of the council had been convened to get its approval for entrusting 80 per cent works to it. He said that the NLC would give preference to private contractors having good reputation for sub-contracting of the works allotted to it.

He hoped that the NLC would execute the development projects entrusted to it in accordance with the prescribed standards and other towns would also entrust their projects to it for ensuring quality of the work. He called upon the council members to monitor the execution of development works in their respective areas.

The council later approved the resolution to allot 80 per cent development works in the town to NLC moved by Works and Services Committee Chairman Abdul Samad Ghani.

Councillor Rana Farooq and Naib Nazims Yousaf Lodhi and Sher Bahadar also praised the standard of roads completed by the NLC in the provincial metropolis.