Makran commissioner, GDA chief review Gwadar and Pasni water supply, Old Town project

GWADAR: Commissioner Makran Dr Tufail Ahmed visited the office of the Gwadar Development Authority (GDA), where he met GDA Director General Moinur Rehman Khan and jointly chaired an important meeting. The meeting reviewed in detail the present state of water supply in Gwadar and Pasni, progress on various development projects including the Old Town rehabilitation project, the drainage system, and land transfer and other revenue matters.

Deputy Commissioner Gwadar Naqeebullah Kakar, GDA Chief Engineer Haji Syed Muhammad, Director Town Planning Shahid Ali, Project Director Water Mir Jan Baloch, Project Director Old Town Rehabilitation Project Mir Duda Khan Marri and other officials attended.

Old Town rehabilitation project

The commissioner was given a detailed briefing on the GDA’s ongoing and completed development projects. These included measures taken to improve basic civic facilities in the city under the Old Town rehabilitation project. He was told that the project covers the construction, widening and paving of about 25 kilometres of the city’s main roads, along with streets and internal roads of a similar nature.

Other works have also been completed. These include Mulla Fazil Chowk, the installation of tuff tiles on roads and streets, and the construction, expansion and rehabilitation of bazaars, educational institutions, graveyards, old cultural heritage sites and the Eidgah.

Water supply and joint task force

The meeting also considered the water supply to Gwadar city and Pasni in detail. The GDA chief engineer said Gwadar city was currently being supplied about 3.5 to 4 million gallons of water a day. He said the Sawad Dam, one of the main sources of supply, was close to drying up, while water was also being drawn from the Shadi Kaur Dam as an alternative arrangement.

The meeting also reviewed available water reserves, the uncertainty of rainfall and advance arrangements to deal with possible shortages in future. The commissioner directed the departments concerned to keep up their efforts to maintain water supply to citizens through mutual coordination and an effective strategy, keeping availability and demand in view.

The commissioner also reviewed the water supply situation in Pasni. He stressed the need to remove problems and ambiguities in the pipeline and administrative matters relating to water supply between the GDA and Pasni. In this regard, he stressed the formation of a joint task force of the Public Health Engineering Department, the district administration, the tehsil administration and the GDA, and ensuring its active role, so that the water supply system could be made regular, coordinated and effective.

The meeting agreed that all the institutions concerned would, within their respective mandates, resolve problems related to water supply through mutual cooperation and constant contact, in order to ease the hardships faced by the people of Gwadar and Pasni.

The meeting also reviewed land-related matters between the GDA and the district administration, revenue matters, land transfers and the availability of land needed for future development projects. It was agreed that land issues delaying the timely completion of development projects would be resolved in line with the guidelines of the Smart Port City Master Plan, through mutual consultation and under legal requirements. The GDA and the district administration would cooperate fully to carry the city’s development forward.

The commissioner stressed the importance of continuing planning, implementation, monitoring and institutional cooperation so that the benefits of development projects reach the people.

Photo: courtesy DGPR Balochistan