LAHORE — Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif has digitally inaugurated five road projects under the Punjab Public-Private Partnership Authority, transferring their management and operation to the private sector in a move expected to generate Rs22 billion in revenue for the provincial government.
The projects, unveiled at a ceremony in Lahore, mark a significant expansion of Punjab’s reliance on public-private partnerships to finance and maintain infrastructure at a time when provincial budgets face mounting pressure.
Roads Handed to Private Operators
The five roads transferred to the PPP model span more than 300 kilometres of highway across central and northeastern Punjab. They include:
- The 80-kilometre Muridke-Narowal Road
- The 33-kilometre Shakargarh-Narowal Road
- The 97-kilometre Faisalabad Ring Road
- The 52-kilometre Faisalabad-Sahianwala Road
- The 56-kilometre Faisalabad-Samundri-Rajana Road
Under the arrangement, private contractors will collect tolls linked with the National Highway Authority for seven years. The companies will also be responsible for the maintenance, construction and repair of the roads. Modern electronic toll plazas will be established along the routes shifted to the PPP model.
Wider Pipeline of Partnership Projects
Marriyum Aurangzeb, Vice Chairperson of the Punjab Public-Private Partnership Authority and a senior provincial minister, briefed the meeting on the projects. She said hostels, hospitals, parks, sports grounds, waste-to-energy facilities, parking plazas, tourism ventures, water supply and recycling schemes were also in the pipeline under the authority.
Effluent treatment plants for filtering toxic industrial wastewater, along with the Zarrar Cafe, tourism and food street projects, will be completed under the same model, she added.
Officials said the processing time for PPP projects has been cut from nearly two years to six months, a change intended to accelerate approvals and attract private investors.
Four More Roads and New Facilities Planned
Four additional roads in Punjab will be shifted to the PPP model: the 42-kilometre Bahawalpur-Yazman Road, the 43-kilometre Yazman-Ahmadpur East Road, the 28-kilometre Raiwind-Changa Manga Road and the 26-kilometre Gajjumata-Kasur Road.
Water and sanitation services projects in Chakwal and Kasur will also be completed through public-private partnerships. In Lahore, the Tourism Department will develop a Time Travel Park under the PPP model.
Other initiatives announced include:
- Pakistan’s first FMD vaccine protection plant to combat foot-and-mouth disease among livestock
- A parking plaza and multimodal commercial facility at Badami Bagh bus terminal
- A bridge over the River Sutlej at Sahuka Pattan
- Black soldier fly larvae facilities for solid waste management at fruit and vegetable markets across Punjab
- Management of 100 sports grounds and related facilities
- A modern truck terminal in Faisalabad
Hostels, Universities and Health Facilities
Girls’ and boys’ hostels will be constructed at Punjab University and 28 other public-sector universities, while hostels at three medical colleges will also be developed through public-private partnerships. Fourteen hostels will be established across the province for working women.
The operation and development of the Nursing Hostel at Sahiwal Teaching Hospital and Faridia Park Sahiwal will likewise be undertaken under the PPP framework.
Projects worth up to Rs500 million can be approved and implemented through the divisional PPP working party headed by the commissioner, according to the arrangements outlined at the ceremony.
CM Praises Officials
Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif appreciated Finance Secretary Mujahid Sher Dil, Communications Secretary Raja Jahangir Anwar, PPP Authority CEO Dr Zeeshan Hanif and their team for their efforts. Provincial Communications Minister Sohaib Ahmed Bharth, Mujahid Sher Dil and Raja Jahangir Anwar also addressed the ceremony.
