The District Coordination Committee (DCC) in Bahawalpur has taken a major step towards rebuilding the region's shattered infrastructure by recommending a massive road rehabilitation package worth Rs 1.29 billion. This crucial decision aims to restore the extensive damage caused by the recent devastating floods.
Unanimous Approval for Urgent Repairs
The recommendation was finalized during a high-level meeting held at the Deputy Commissioner’s Office. The session was chaired by Convener and Member Provincial Assembly (MPA) Mian Shoaib Owaisi and attended by a significant gathering of local lawmakers and officials. Key attendees included MPAs Khalid Mahmood Jajja (PP-247), Hassan Askari Sheikh (PP-248), Sahibzada Ghazeen Abbasi (PP-249), and Syed Amir Ali Shah (PP-250).
Senior administrative officers, including Deputy Commissioner Bahawalpur Dr. Farhan Farooq, were also present. During the meeting, detailed proposals for restoring the flood-ravaged road network were presented and received unanimous approval from all members.
Addressing Public Hardship and Pushing for Funds
Convener Mian Shoaib Owaisi highlighted the severe inconvenience faced by local residents due to the delayed road repairs. He stressed the urgency of the situation and called for the immediate release of funds to kickstart the vital reconstruction work. To expedite the process, he directed the Executive Engineer Highways, Farukh Mumtaz Warraich, to promptly submit a comprehensive list of all damaged roads to the provincial government.
Engineer Warraich, in his briefing to the committee, revealed the staggering scale of the damage. He reported that a total of 57 roads across the district were severely impacted by the floods in 2025, underscoring the critical need for swift financial approval to begin restoration.
Review of Ongoing Development Projects
The meeting also served as a platform to review the progress of the Annual Development Programme (ADP) for the fiscal year 2025-26. Deputy Director Development Faisal Shahzad provided a detailed update, informing the committee that 87 development projects, with a cumulative cost of Rs. 555.9 million, are currently active in Bahawalpur.
He further broke down the status of pending projects, noting that out of 46 previously unapproved schemes, 32 have now been approved. The remaining 14 are in the final stages of the approval pipeline. On the financial front, Shahzad reported that Rs. 126.8 million had been utilized by June 2025, with another Rs. 95 million allocated for the ongoing fiscal year.
Concluding the session, Convener Owaisi issued clear instructions to all relevant departments to accelerate the pace of development work. He emphasized that timely completion of projects is essential for public welfare and warned that no compromise on the quality of construction would be tolerated. He also called for the immediate forwarding of all pending development schemes to the provincial government to prevent any further delays.
