The Ravi Riverfront Urban Development Project (RRUDP) is an

urban development Urban means "related to a city". In that sense, the term may refer to: * Urban area, geographical area distinct from rural areas * Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities Urban may also refer to: General * Urban (name), a list of peop ...

megaproject A megaproject is an extremely large-scale construction and investment project. A more general definition is "Megaprojects are temporary endeavours (i.e. projects) characterised by: large investment commitment, vast complexity (especially in org ...

Lahore District Lahore District () is a Districts of Punjab, Pakistan, district in Punjab (Pakistan), Punjab, Pakistan, consisting of the provincial capital, Lahore and surrounding areas. It is the most populous Districts of Pakistan, district of Pakistan, with ...

Punjab, Pakistan Punjab (, ) is a Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Pakistan. With a population of over 127 million, it is the Demographics of Pakistan, most populous province in Pakistan and the List of first-level administrative divisions by popu ...

that runs along the

Ravi River The Ravi River is a transboundary river in South Asia, flowing through northwestern India and eastern Pakistan, and is one of five major rivers of the Punjab region. Under the Indus Waters Treaty of 1960, the waters of the Ravi and two oth ...

in a north-east to south-west direction. It includes the construction of a

planned city A planned community, planned city, planned town, or planned settlement is any community that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed on previously undeveloped land. This contrasts with settlements that evolve ...

and the rehabilitation of the Ravi River into a perennial freshwater body. The project is to be completed in three phases. It is expected to be the largest riverfront of the world when finished.

History

The idea of an urban development on the Ravi riverfront was first suggested in 1947 by the then

Deputy Commissioner A deputy commissioner is a police, income tax or administrative official in many countries. The rank is commonplace in police forces of Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, usually ranking below the Commissioner. Australia In all Aust ...

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

. In 2013, the Government of Punjab began considering the project, which was initially planned to span over . In 2014,

Lahore Development Authority Lahore Development Authority (LDA) is responsible for new planned development in Lahore, Pakistan. It also regulates and issues permits for new construction and housing projects, private houses, commercial development and remodels. It also con ...

hired

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

-based architectural firm Meinhardt Group to run a

feasibility study A feasibility study is an assessment of the practicality of a project or system. A feasibility study aims to objectively and rationally uncover the strengths and weaknesses of an existing business or proposed venture, opportunities and threats pr ...

on the Ravi River for the development of the project. The project was inaugurated on 7 August 2020 by then Prime Minister Imran Khan, and construction began in December 2020. After the project was scrapped by the

Islamabad High Court The Islamabad High Court (IHC) is the senior court of the Islamabad Capital Territory, Pakistan, with appellate jurisdiction over the following District courts of Pakistan, district courts: * Islamabad District Court (East) * Islamabad Distr ...

Imran Khan Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi (born 5 October 1952) is a Pakistani politician, philanthropist, and former cricketer who served as the 19th prime minister of Pakistan from August 2018 until April 2022. He was the founder of the political party Pak ...

's government in Punjab began working on the project once again in September 2022. it had attracted in foreign investment.

Project details

The

Rs. Rupee (, ) is the common name for the currencies of India, Mauritius, Nepal, Pakistan, Seychelles, and Sri Lanka, and of former currencies of Afghanistan, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, the United Arab Emirates (as the Gulf rupee), British East Afri ...

5 trillion project aims to rehabilitate and develop the Ravi River into a perennial freshwater body, with high-quality urban development on the adjoining land for up to about 35 million inhabitants. The idea is based on the developments around the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, s ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. Ravi Urban Development Authority, founded in July 2020, is to oversee the project. In August 2020, the Provincial Minister of Punjab for housing, urban development and public health engineering

Mehmood-ur-Rasheed Mian Mehmood ur Rashid is a Pakistani politician from Lahore who was the Provincial Minister of Punjab for Housing, Urban Development and Public Health Engineering, in office from 27 August 2018 till 28 March 2022. He had been a member of the Pro ...

announced the revised area of the riverfront development to be instead of 18,000 hectares. 70% of its area will be reserved for the plantation of 6 million trees. A lake, an

urban forest Urban means "related to a city". In that sense, the term may refer to: * Urban area, geographical area distinct from rural areas * Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities Urban may also refer to: General * Urban (name), a list of peop ...

, three barrages and six

water treatment plants Water treatment is any process that improves the quality of water to make it appropriate for a specific end-use. The end use may be drinking, industrial water supply, irrigation, river flow maintenance, water recreation or many other uses, inc ...

will be built in the first phase.

Upper Chenab Canal Marala Headworks is a headworks situated on the Chenab River near the city of Sialkot in Sialkot district in Punjab, Pakistan. A weir was first built during 1906–1912 in the British India to feed the Upper Chenab Canal, as part of the 'Triple ...

and

BRB canal __NOTOC__ Bambanwala-Ravi-Bedian Canal (BRB Canal), also called Ichogil Canal (by Indian authors), is a manmade waterway in Pakistan that takes off from the Upper Chenab Canal near the Bambanwala village (to the west of Daska), runs southeast u ...

will be used to provide water to the development, if needed. The masterplan is to build a modern city on the banks of the Ravi River, bordering Lahore on the north and the west sides, consisting of

green belt A green belt or greenbelt is a policy, and land-use zone designation used in land-use planning to retain areas of largely undeveloped, wilderness, wild, or agricultural landscape, land surrounding or neighboring urban areas. Similar concepts ...

pier A pier is a raised structure that rises above a body of water and usually juts out from its shore, typically supported by piling, piles or column, pillars, and provides above-water access to offshore areas. Frequent pier uses include fishing, b ...

s, and

boardwalk A boardwalk (alternatively board walk, boarded path, or promenade) is an elevated footpath, walkway, or causeway typically built with wooden planks, which functions as a type of low water bridge or small viaduct that enables pedestrians to ...

s, along with 1.4 million

residential unit A residential community is a community, usually a small town or city, that is composed mostly of residents, as opposed to commercial businesses and/or industrial facilities, all three of which are considered to be the three main types o ...

Criticism

The Ravi Riverfront development has faced criticism that it is leading to "rampant land grabs" which may displace thousands of farmers. There are accusations that the government is expropriating the land for the benefit of commercial developers, at below the fair value, and a

Lahore High Court The Lahore High Court () is a provincial court house based in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. It was established as a high court on 21 March 1882. The Lahore High Court has jurisdiction over the province of Punjab. The High Court's principal seat is ...

ruling has found “gross irregularities” in the development process. Further there are concerns of the environmental impact of the development.

References

{{Reflist City plans Planned communities in Pakistan Proposed populated places Proposed special economic zones 2020 establishments in Pakistan Urban planning in Pakistan Urbanisation in Pakistan

History

Project details

Criticism

See also

References