By Noor Aftab (The News)
Ministry of Finance is giving a serious thought to a proposal for establishment of Islamabad Industrial Park near Motorway, M-2, on a land measuring 5,000 kanals at a cost of Rs13.2 billion that would have 380 developed plots of one acre each for industry and 25 acres of developed plots for commercial operations, the sources said here on Saturday.
The official documents available with this correspondent stated that there would be a captive power plant of 100MW capacity for supplying uninterrupted power supply to the resident industries that would be established on build, own and operate basis.
The proposal has been submitted by National Industrial Parks Development and Management Company that is a federal government entity working under Ministry of Industries and Production as a subsidiary of Pakistan Industrial Development Corporation. It would also assist industries to design, construct and operate their factories by helping them in meeting NEQs, helping industries to find customers in the local market and facilitate them in the acquisition of necessary approvals and requisite utilities.
“There is a long standing demand of existing industry in the I-9 and I-10 industrial sectors of Islamabad to have another industrial estate for planned and systematic industrial growth for creating new job opportunities and alleviating poverty. The Industrial Park would have regular power supply, alternative source of energy, potable water for both human and industrial uses, well laid out and paved internal roads, sewage system and other forms of industrial waste disposal,” the documents revealed.
The Industrial Park would also have effluent treatment plant, solid waste disposal area, commercial area, trucking terminal, post office, banks, fire brigade, business facilitation centre, water storage and distribution system, warehouses and assembly plant buildings.
The proposal also focuses on issues related to natural environment that is why it maintained that all the industrial units would be environmentally compliant and no hazardous units would be allowed in the Industrial Park. All the residents industries would be having their pre-treatment facilities and the park would have its own effluent treatment plant.
The targets set for this project include attracting investment worth Rs84 billion over five years after its completion that can help generate 40,000 to 50,000 employment opportunities besides providing handsome revenue to the government exchequer.
The proposed project would be discussed in detail and in case of its approval the government would help generate funds to the tune of Rs7.33 billion from the joint investment companies for National Industrial Parks Development and Management Company.
The amount to be generated by these companies would be disbursed among the land owners in coordination with Capital Development Authority for acquisition of 5,000 kanals of land and initiating the civil infrastructure for the project. Once the project is launched the rest of cost of infrastructure would be picked from the industry.
Good plan for Islamabad and it will create thousands jobs for people.