Ravi Riverfront Urban Development Project

Last updated

Ravi Riverfront
Location Lahore District, Punjab, Pakistan
Coordinates 31°37′08″N74°19′31″E / 31.6190°N 74.3253°E / 31.6190; 74.3253
StatusUnder construction [1]
GroundbreakingDecember 2020
Use Riverfront, waterfront
Website ruda.gov.pk
Companies
ArchitectMeinhardt Group
DeveloperRavi Riverfront Development Authority
Technical details
Cost PRs.  5 trillion (US$30.69 billion)
Size41,308 hectares (102,074 acres)
No. of residents15 million (expected) [2]
Proposed1947
Ravi Riverfront Urban Development Project

The Ravi Riverfront Urban Development Project (RRUDP) is an urban development megaproject in Lahore District, Punjab, Pakistan that runs along the Ravi River in a north-east to south-west direction. [3] It includes the construction of a 41,308-hectare (102,074-acre) planned city and the rehabilitation of the Ravi River into a perennial freshwater body. [4] [5] The project is to be completed in three phases. It is expected to be the largest riverfront of the world when finished. [6] [7]

Contents

History

The idea of an urban development on the Ravi riverfront was first suggested in 1947 by the then Deputy Commissioner of Lahore. [8] In 2013, the Government of Punjab began considering the project, which was initially planned to span over 18,000 hectares (44,000 acres). In 2014, Lahore Development Authority hired Singapore-based architectural firm Meinhardt Group to run a feasibility study on the Ravi River for the development of the project. [5] [9] [10] [11]

The project was inaugurated on 7 August 2020 by then Prime Minister Imran Khan, [12] [8] and construction began in December 2020. [13]

After the project was scrapped by the Islamabad High Court, Imran Khan's government in Punjab began working on the project once again in September 2022. [14] As of September 2022, it had attracted US$ 40 billion in foreign investment. [15]

Project details

The Rs. 5 trillion project aims to rehabilitate and develop the Ravi River into a perennial freshwater body, with high-quality urban development on the adjoining land for up to about 35 million inhabitants. [16] [5] The idea is based on the developments around the River Thames in London. [17] Ravi Urban Development Authority, founded in July 2020, is to oversee the project. [18]

In August 2020, the Provincial Minister of Punjab for housing, urban development and public health engineering Mehmood-ur-Rasheed announced the revised area of the riverfront development to be 40,000 hectares (100,000 acres) instead of 18,000 hectares. 70% of its area will be reserved for the plantation of 6 million trees. [10] A lake, an urban forest, three barrages and six water treatment plants will be built in the first phase. Upper Chenab Canal and BRB canal will be used to provide water to the development, if needed. [8]

The masterplan is to build a modern city on the banks of the Ravi River, bordering Lahore on the north and the west sides, consisting of green belts, piers, and boardwalks, along with 1.4 million residential units. [3] [12]

Criticism

The Ravi Riverfront development has faced criticism that it is leading to "rampant land grabs" which may displace thousands of farmers. [19] There are accusations that the government is expropriating the land for the benefit of commercial developers, at below the fair value, and a Lahore High Court ruling has found “gross irregularities” in the development process. [19] Further there are concerns of the environmental impact of the development. [19]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Punjab, Pakistan</span> Province of Pakistan

Punjab, historically known as Panchanada or Pentapotamia, is a province of Pakistan. Located in central-eastern region of the country, Punjab is the second-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the largest by population. Lahore is the capital and the largest city of the province. Other major cities include Faisalabad, Rawalpindi, Gujranwala and Multan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lahore</span> Capital of Punjab, Pakistan

Lahore is the capital and largest city of the Pakistani province of Punjab. It is the second largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and 26th largest in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is located in the north-eastern region of Punjab, along the River Ravi. Lahore is one of Pakistan's major industrial and economic hubs. It has been the historic capital and cultural centre of the wider Punjab region, and is one of Pakistan's most socially liberal, progressive, and cosmopolitan cities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Faisalabad</span> City in Punjab, Pakistan (formerly Lyallpur)

Faisalabad, formerly known as Lyallpur, is the second largest city and industrial centre of the Pakistani province of Punjab. It is a metropolitan city of Pakistan and the third largest and populous city in Pakistan, with an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2023 with the growth rate of 2.37%. It is situated in the north-east of the country, lying between the plains of the Ravi and Chenab River. Faisalabad is one of Pakistan's wealthiest and most industrialized city, the largest industrial hub and second largest city of the wider Punjab region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Imran Khan</span> Prime Minister of Pakistan from 2018 to 2022

Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi is a Pakistani politician and former cricketer who served as the 22nd prime minister of Pakistan from August 2018 until April 2022. He is the founder and former chairman of the political party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) from 1996 to 2023. He was the captain of the Pakistan national cricket team throughout the 1980s and early 90s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ravi River</span> River in India and Pakistan

The Ravi River is a transboundary river crossing northwestern India and eastern Pakistan. It is one of five rivers associated with the Punjab region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sahiwal District</span> District in Punjab, Pakistan

Sahiwal District, formerly known as Montgomery district, is a district in the Punjab province of Pakistan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pervaiz Elahi</span> Pakistani politician (born 1945)

Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi Warraich is a Pakistani politician who is the former Chief Minister of Punjab. He was a member of the Provincial Assembly of the Punjab from August 2018 till January 2023, when he, as chief minister, dissolved the assembly. In 2023, he left the Pakistan Muslim League (Q) and joined Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) along with his son, Moonis Elahi, and 10 other former PML(Q) MPAs over political rifts with the party president and cousin, Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain. He was appointed president of the PTI. He was the former president of the Punjab Division of the PML(Q).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sabarmati Riverfront</span> Development at Ahmedabad, India

Sabarmati Riverfront is a waterfront being developed along the banks of Sabarmati river in Ahmedabad, India. Proposed in the 1960s, the construction began in 2005. Since 2012, under Phase 1, the waterfront is gradually opened to public as and when facilities are constructed and various facilities are actively under construction. The major objectives of project are environment improvement, social infrastructure and sustainable development. Phase 2 was approved in 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shehbaz Sharif</span> 23rd and 24th Prime Minister of Pakistan since 2024

Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif is a Pakistani politician and businessman who is currently serving as the 24th prime minister of Pakistan since March 2024, having previously served in the post from April 2022 to August 2023. He is the president of the Pakistan Muslim League (N) (PML-N). Previously in his political career, he served as the chief minister of Punjab three times, making him the longest-serving chief minister of Punjab.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">M-11 motorway (Pakistan)</span> Sialkot–Lahore motorway

The Sialkot-Lahore Motorway (M11) is a north-south motorway in Punjab, Pakistan, which connects Sialkot to Lahore via eastern parts of the Punjab. The total length of this motorway is 103 km. It was opened on 18 March 2020 at the cost of 44 billion rupees. It has reduced the travel time between Sialkot and Lahore to just 50 minutes instead of the alternative route via N-5 comprising 145 km and taking more than 2 hours. This new road connects the Sialkot and Lahore Airport junctions with an express travel mode of 1 hour, and would uplift the Sialkot city and the surrounding rural hinterlands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moonis Elahi</span> Pakistani politician

Chaudhry Moonis Elahi is a Pakistani politician hailing from Punjabi Jatt Warraich family, who has been a member of the National Assembly of Pakistan from October 2018 to August 2023. He has been the Minister for Water Resources from 13 July 2021 till 10 April 2022 when the no-confidence motion against Imran Khan succeeded. Previously, he was a member of the Provincial Assembly of the Punjab from 2008 to May 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hamza Shahbaz</span> Former Chief Minister of Punjab

Mian Muhammad Hamza Shahbaz is a Pakistani politician, businessman, and the eldest son of former Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. He served as the Leader of the Opposition in the Provincial Assembly of the Punjab from September 2018 to April 2022, and resumed this role on 20 October 2022 and continued until the dissolution of the assembly. He briefly held the position of Chief Minister of Punjab from 30 April 2022 to 2 May 2022. His tenure as a member of the Provincial Assembly of the Punjab spanned from August 2018 to January 2023. Prior to this, he was a member of the National Assembly of Pakistan from June 2008 to May 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shafqat Mahmood</span> Pakistani politician

Shafqat Mahmood is a Pakistani bureaucrat-turned-politician who served as the Federal Minister for Federal Education and Professional Training, and Federal Minister for National History and Literary Heritage, from 20 August 2018 to 3 April 2022. Before going into politics, he served as a grade 20 officer of the Pakistan Administrative Service.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">China–Pakistan Economic Corridor</span> Network of infrastructure projects

China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is a 3,000 km Chinese infrastructure network project in construction in Pakistan. This sea-and-land-based corridor is aimed to secure and reduce the passage for China's energy imports from the Middle East, by avoiding the existing route from the Straits of Malacca between Malaysia and Indonesia, which, in case of war could be blockaded, and thus hamper the Chinese energy-dependent economic avenues. Developing a deep water port at Gwadar in the Arabian Sea and a well built road and rail line from this port to Xinjiang region in western China would be a shortcut for boosting the trade between Europe and China. In Pakistan, it aims to overcome an electricity shortfall, infrastructural development and modernize transportation networks. Along with shifting it from an agricultural based economic structure to industrial based.

Abdul Aleem Khan is a Pakistani politician and businessman from Lahore. Abdul Aleem Khan currently serves as a member of the National Assembly after being elected from Constituency NA 117, Shahdara Lahore in the general elections held on February 8th 2024. Abdul Aleem Khan owns Samaa TV and Vision Group. He was also the Senior Minister of Punjab and Minister of Food from 2020 to 2021. He also served as a member of the Provincial Assembly of the Punjab from August 2018 to 2021. He announced his separation from politics on Twitter in a tweet. Later in a statement to the media, he said that he had no intentions of joining politics again and that he would focus on the welfare work done through the Abdul Aleem Khan Foundation but soon after the economic crisis and instability in Pakistan, he decided to join politics again and launched the political party along with renowned politician Jahangir Khan Tareen named the Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party in June 2023. He is a founding member and president of the party.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hammad Azhar</span> Pakistani politician

Muhammad Hammad Azhar is a Pakistani politician from Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf. He was elected from NA-126 (Lahore-IV) in 2018 Pakistani general election and remained a member of National Assembly of Pakistan between August 2018 to January 2023. He served in various ministerial positions in Imran Khan ministry between 2018 and April 2022. He served as Energy Minister of Pakistan and Finance Minister of Pakistan between 16 April 2021 to 3 April 2022 and 29 March 2021 to 16 April 2021 respectively.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kartarpur Corridor</span> Border corridor between the neighbouring nations of India and Pakistan

The Kartarpur Corridor is a visa-free border crossing and religious corridor, connecting the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib, near Lahore in Pakistan to Gurudwara Dera Baba Nanak, Gurdaspur district, Punjab, India. The crossing allows devotees from India to visit the gurdwara in Kartarpur, Pakistan, 4.7 kilometres from the India–Pakistan border on the Pakistani side without a visa. However, Pakistani Sikhs are unable to use the border crossing, and cannot access Dera Baba Nanak on the Indian side without first obtaining an Indian visa or unless they work there.

Madhopur Headworks is a barrage on the Ravi River in Madhopur, just 14 km from Pathankot city in Pathankot district in the Indian state of Punjab. It is located on the border with Jammu and Kashmir. The Upper Bari Doab Canal (UBDC) off-taking from Madhopur irrigates agricultural lands in Punjab and provides water to the cities of Pathankot, Gurdaspur, Batala and Amritsar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Punjab Irrigation Department</span>

The Punjab Irrigation Department is a provincial government department responsible for irrigation in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It irrigates 21 million acres (8,500,000 ha) of the agricultural land in the province.

Chouhdary Omer Sarfraz Cheema is a Pakistani politician belonging to Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf (1996-present). He has been a founding member of PTI. He served as the 42nd Governor of Punjab from 3 April 2022 to 10 May 2022 and was appointed by Imran Khan. He was removed as Governor and replaced by Muhammad Baligh Ur Rehman on 30 May 2022, with approval from the President of Pakistan. He was later appointed as Advisor to the Chief Minister of Punjab on Information by Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi. He was further appointed as Advisor to the Chief Minister on Home and Prisons. He ceased to hold both offices on 14 January 2023.

References

  1. ↑ "Imran says work underway on Ravi city project worth $40bn investment". 19 September 2022.
  2. ↑ "Imran says work underway on Ravi city project worth $40bn investment". 19 September 2022.
  3. 1 2 "PM Imran to inaugurate River Ravi Urban Development Authority today". Daily Times . 7 August 2020. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
  4. ↑ Alam, Ahmad Rafay; Qasmi, Ali Usman; Sajjad, Fizzah; Spence, Tabitha; Javed, Umair; Jan, Ammar Ali (13 June 2021). Zaidi, Hasan (ed.). "Remaking a River: Land and Profit along the Ravi". Eos . Pakistan Herald Publication.
  5. 1 2 3 "Ravi Riverfront, Pakistan – portfolio". meinhardtgroup.com. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
  6. ↑ Joles, Betsy (19 January 2022). "Land Grab or River Revival? Inside Pakistan's $7 Billion 'Green' City". Bloomberg News . Retrieved 18 December 2022.
  7. ↑ Naqvi, Hassan (23 January 2022). "Promising RUDA". Bol News . Retrieved 19 December 2022.
  8. 1 2 3 "پاکستان کی آزادی کے دن دیکھا گیا لاہوریوں کا خواب وزیر اعظم عمران خان نے آج 73 سال بعد پورا کردیا" [Prime Minister Imran Khan fulfilled the dream of Lahoris, seen on the day of Pakistan's independence, 73 years later today]. Daily Pakistan (in Urdu). 7 August 2020. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  9. ↑ eProperty (28 October 2014). "Ravi Riverfront Urban Development Project - Proposed". eProperty®. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
  10. 1 2 "Inspired by River Thames in London, Punjab to Develop a 'New City' Project". Zameen.com. 26 December 2019. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
  11. ↑ "Ravi Riverfront". Menhardt Group. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
  12. 1 2 "PM Imran links multi-trillion rupee Ravi project to Lahore's survival". The News International . 7 August 2020. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  13. ↑ Raza, Syed Irfan (4 December 2020). "Work on Ravi urban project has started, PM told". Dawn . Retrieved 11 February 2021.
  14. ↑ "PM Imran backs Ravi riverfront project after LHC scraps it". Dawn . 28 January 2022. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
  15. ↑ "Imran says work underway on Ravi city project worth $40bn investment". Dunya News . 19 September 2022. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
  16. ↑ Malik, Mansoor (8 August 2020). "Imran launches Rs5tr Ravi City project". Dawn . Retrieved 18 December 2022.
  17. ↑ Zia, Ahsan (19 July 2020). "New City upon Ravi". Shehr. The News International . Retrieved 10 November 2021. When the project was initiated under Parvez Elahi's government, it was expected to be developed along the lines of England's Kingston upon Thames which is part of the Greater London. Later, Mian Shehbaz Sharif ... wanted to develop it like Dubai but was forced to shelve it in 2013 ... The current government of Punjab is supposed to take off from where Elahi's government left.
  18. ↑ Jazil, Muhammad (9 February 2022). "RUDA plans to preserve Ravi's water". The Nation . Retrieved 18 December 2022.
  19. 1 2 3 Baloch, Shah Meer (2 November 2021). "'We will be homeless': Lahore farmers accuse 'mafia' of land grab for new city". The Guardian . Retrieved 2 November 2021.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.