PESHAWAR:The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government is working to beautify the provincial capital.
Peshawar residents walk past demolished cabins and shops under the Faqirabad Bridge October 2. The Municipal Corporation of Peshawar has launched a drive against illegal construction to beautify the city.
Terror attacks have hampered development projects in Peshawar, but the KP government won't let Pakistan's war with militants delay the implementation of the city's "Clean and Green Peshawar" campaign, officials say.
"This war and terrorism will end one day, and tourists from all over the world will start visiting this historic city again," Shiraz Paracha, spokesman for KP Chief Minister Pervez Khattak, told Central Asia Online.
KP is carrying out the improvements in two phases. First, workers will clean up streets and roads. Next, they will repair damaged parts of the city and create a green belt, by planting trees from the junction of Ring Road and Grand Trunk Road to Hayatabad on University Road.
"The washing and cleaning and then the beautification of the city will change its entire look and will give a pleasant feeling to citizens," Municipal Corporation of Peshawar (MCP) Chief Officer Javed Amjad said.
Benefits of the campaign
The campaign aims to preserve the city's heritage and culture; build new parks with entertainment opportunities for children and women; and boost the local economy by designating some sections of some streets just for food vendors, Paracha said.
The government also plans to transform the Balahisar Fort – presently a base for security forces – into a tourist spot, with the hope of making it a "city within a city" similar to the Shahi Qila (Lahore Fort), he said. The revamped fort will offer eateries and a fun zone for children.
Another goal is to move the Peshawar Central Prison outside of the city, thus clearing space at the existing site for a large park.
"The government is also discussing the matter with the World Heritage Foundation and UNESCO of preserving historic sites not only in Peshawar but all over the province, including northern areas," Paracha said. The plan is meant to renovate historic buildings and structures in Qissa Khwani, Ganj, Gor Ghatri, Saddar and other areas.
Making it easier to move about town
Another objective is to ease traffic flow in the city, and that involves stepping up the fight against illegal construction, which can sometimes hamper traffic.
The MCP and the Cantonment Board Peshawar October 2, for example, demolished more than 600 makeshift shops and vendor stalls along the Grand Trunk Road, the inner city and other parts of Saddar and Nauthia.
"The campaign against the encroachments will continue throughout the city, so not only the smooth flow of traffic can be ensured but also the beauty of the city will grow," Javed said.
Traffic police and the transport department, MCP and Peshawar Development Authority are working through a co-ordination committee to execute various developmental projects and spruce up roads, squares and buildings along roads, Paracha said.
The government plans to ban more than 50,000 unregistered auto-rickshaws. Meanwhile, it is developing a system to ban old vehicles that lack roadworthy fitness certificates. The government has also ordered the owners of shopping plazas to build parking lots so customers won't clog traffic by parking their cars in the streets.
"The KP chief minister and his cabinet also have discussed with Federal Railways Minister Khwaja Saad Rafiq the possibility of starting a mass transit train from Peshawar to Hayatabad," Paracha added. "The project would greatly reduce the traffic burden on roads."
