GUJRAT: The Punjab government has approved establishment of the much-awaited Parks and Horticulture Authority (PHA) in Gujrat and released Rs57m for the purchase of machinery, equipment and other infrastructural development expenditures for it.

The public parks and a large number of greenbelts along the major arteries of the city, which were turning into ruins due to negligence and lack of resources of the municipal corporation and district council, would now be responsibility of the PHA.

Deputy Commissioner Muhammad Ali Randhawa has been given the additional charge of director general of the authority until appointment of a BPS-18 officer on the post.

Total 311 posts have been approved for the Gujrat PHA and that include 200 posts of gardeners, eight of supervisors, 10 sanitary workers, 25 tube well operators and other staff.

The financial resources to run the PHA will be generated through the income from billboards and other such advertising material of the private companies that would use the public parks, greenbelts and streetlight poles on the medians along roads for publicity.

Rs57m released for setting up the authority

The PHA will purchase 16 tractors, eight water bowsers, five push cutters, five peter engines, four tillers, two loader vehicles and 10 motorbikes for the field staff and other machinery and equipments.

It is learnt the Punjab government has issued directions against constructing any new building for the PHA as the existing building of any of the government department will be utilised as its offices for the time being whereas the PHA would also use the building infrastructures in parks.

Four major parks of the city, Shahbaz Sharif Park established on 92 acres at the bank of river Chenab near Kathala, Nawaz Sharif Park near the general bus stand, Ladies and Children Park along Ramtalai Road and Inayat Park Fawara Chowk, were being destroyed after the elected representatives took charge as heads of the district council and municipal corporation in December last year.

These local government institutions would often give excuses of insufficient funds and staff shortage for the bad state of the parks.

The district administration has also been striving to get approval for the launch of the PHA since long but PML-N leader Chaudhry Ahmed Saeed is said to have played a vital role in convincing the chief minister who visited the Lahore residence of Mr Saeed around a week ago.

Published in Dawn, November 27th, 2017