RAWALPINDI: The Water and Sanitation Agency (Wasa) on Tuesday invited bids from international and local firms to award contracts for four water supply projects in Rawalpindi under the Developing Resilient Environment and Advancing Municipal Services Phase-I.

The projects are financed by the Asian Development Bank which will loan the provincial government $107 million. It may be mentioned that the federal government had applied for the financing of these projects. The caretaker government gave approval for these projects in January.

According to the details, three projects pertain to the supply of water whereas one project will focus on the availability of groundwater in the garrison city. The firms are supposed to submit their bids by November 1.

The development came after a delegation of the Punjab caretaker government visited the ADB headquarters to finalise the terms and conditions of the loan after getting approval from the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) on August 6 during the tenure of the PDM. A formal agreement between Punjab and the ADB will be signed next month.

Agency to hire international firm for water treatment plant at Chahan Dam

An official said during the visit to the ADB, the caretaker government and bank agreed to start the work on the projects. He said for the construction of a water treatment plant at Chahan Dam, an experienced international firm would be hired whereas the rest of the projects would be awarded to local firms.

Wasa Managing Director Tanveer Ahmed said that the agency would get the funding from ADB in November and work on the projects would be started by January after the completion of the tendering process.

To check the availability of underground, the civic agency would launch a study and after its completion, the authorities would get information about the availability of clean groundwater to manage it properly over the next decade.

Projects sponsored by ADB

One of the projects is the ‘Integrated Water Supply System Based on Chahan Dam’, worth $95 million. The main objective of this project is to provide 12 MGD of potable water to areas in Wasa’s jurisdiction to improve water service delivery through a sustainable and economical source. Dhamial, Girja and Chakra, Dhama Syedan, Lakhan, Chak Jalal Din (I&II) and Kalyal would benefit from this project. ‘Hydrological and Hydrogeological Assessment of Water Resources for Sustainable Supply of Water for Rawalpindi City and Environs’ would cost $3 million.

The ‘Replacement of the Existing Conductance Main from Rawal Lake Filtration Plant to Waterworks’ at Sufaid Tanki on Saidpur Road, worth $10.10 million. It aims to restore the originally allocated Wasa’s share of portable water (5 MGD) and the capacity of Rawal Lake Filtration Plant (28 MGD) through a sustainable and economical source.

This will benefit Satellite Town, Shamsabad, Asghar Mall Scheme, Rawal Town, Rehmanabad and Pindora. Proposed conductance mains will supply drinking water from the Rawal Lake Filtration Plant to ground storage tanks located at Sufaid Tanki, benefitting 125,000 people.

The other project is ‘Augmentation of Water Supply and Formation of District Metered Areas in Khayaban-i-Sir Syed’, worth $5.54 million. Through the execution of the project, the current deficit would be reduced, reliance on tubewells would be minimised, and non-revenue water would also be managed. The project would focus on the augmentation of the water supply, installation of water meters, replacement of outlived pipes and covering of the unserved areas.

Published in Dawn, September 20th, 2023