Rawalpindi: The Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) will commence with the drafting of the new master plan for the city from next month onwards, a news source reported. This detailed blueprint is expected to dictate the city’s infrastructural pursuits for the next 30 years.
According to a senior RDA official, the provincial government recently approved the terms of reference (ToR) for the layout plan. For thus purpose, the authority’s governing body will approve the hiring process for a consultant in its next meeting scheduled for July 25.
RDA’s master plan becomes all the more important because of the revision being done to Islamabad’s master plan. Capital Development Authority (CDA) faces planning issues due to a lack of master plan for Rawalpindi.
The official said that the residential, commercial, green, and industrial areas of the city needed to be streamlined. He added the civic agency planned to use satellite images of Rawalpindi in its bid to reorganise the city into sectors.
He said that two master plans, previously prepared for the city in 1968 and 1996, were either not implemented properly or had failed to perform their entire functions.
The master plan aims to resolve traffic problems in the city and, as well as manage urban sprawl. With the increase in the population, the availability of water, sewerage, electricity, gas, telephone connections, commercial and residential areas, industry, roads, streets, streetlights, parks, greenbelts, hospitals and educational institutions needs to be ensured and properly managed.
