Lahore: A meeting chaired by the Minister for Local Government, Zeeshan Rafique, was held at the Civil Secretariat to assess the progress of the Model Village Program. According to Directorate General Public Relation – Govt of Punjab, the meeting was attended by Secretary Local Government Zaid Bin Maqsood, Special Secretary Shahid Zaman Lak, Additional Secretary Mehreen Fahim Abbasi, and Punjab Rural Municipal Services Company (PRMSC) CEO Khurram Pervez, who provided a briefing on the project’s developments.

Minister Rafique expressed satisfaction with the 46 percent physical progress achieved in the villages of the Lahore division and instructed the PRMSC to adhere to the project timeline. He stated that 485 villages across 10 divisions in Punjab are being developed into model villages under the initiative “Maryam Nawaz’s Sohna Punjab.” He also committed additional budgetary funds for the program in the upcoming fiscal year, emphasizing that providing quality basic facilities is the right of the rural population.

The meeting also evaluated the Punjab Rural Sustainable Water Supply and Sanitation Project (PRSWSSP), which has been implemented in villages of 16 tehsils in Punjab. Minister Rafique disclosed that upon completion, the project will provide clean water and sanitation facilities to 6 million rural residents. He noted that the pilot phase of the PRSWSSP had been successfully completed and that priority is being given to more underdeveloped villages in the project rollout.