Ravi Riverfront project aimed to fight water recession, aggression: RUDA chairman.

LAHORE -- Ravi Urban Development Authority (RUDA) Chairman Rashid Aziz has said that creation of the Ravi Riverfront city is a matter of survival and sustainability of the historic city of Lahore, and its dwellers should support the project beyond personal biases.

In an interview with reporter here on Sunday, he said that one of the major challenges facing Lahore was provision of clean drinking water for ever-increasing population of the metropolis after the groundwater levels receded at an alarming rate. He regretted that the past governments failed to address the issue on permanent basis.

The RUDA chairman said that River Ravi had turned into a sewerage nullah after the closure of the river water by India and dumping of waste of the city into the river-bed over the years, adding that the river life had almost extinguished due to absence of biological oxygen demand (BOD).

"Similarly water is a threat if the Indian government releases water from the two dams, built on Ravi Ravi. The water may leave the city of Lahore flooded if steps are not taken to avert the threat of water aggression," he added. He said that Ravi Riverfront city provided a viable solution to these challenges.

To a question, the RUDA chief said the new city was being developed for reviving the Rive Ravi, developing a lake, building three barrages and recharging the groundwater for the city of Lahore. He said that the 46-kilometre long lake would be the longest watercourse in the world, adding that the 15-kilometre part of the lake would be completed by the start of 2023.

'With the construction of three barrages and 46-kilometre-long lake, Lahore will become safe from floods for good,' he believed.

He said water treatment plants would treat water, which would be used for irrigating...