Across 52 cities of Punjab, the streets are finally beginning to tell a different story.

Roads that once crumbled under heavy traffic are being rebuilt. Decades-old drainage lines are being replaced. Sewerage systems are being modernized, public spaces restored and neglected neighborhoods brought back into the development map. Under the Punjab Development Plan, the provincial government has committed Rs.305 billion to what is rapidly becoming one of the largest urban renewal programmes in South Asia.

The ambition is not merely cosmetic. It is structural. And unlike many public-sector announcements in the south asian region, the machinery is already on the ground.

Nearly 40 percent of priority infrastructure work across 51 cities has already been completed, with drainage, sewerage and road reconstruction moving at an unusual speed. In Lahore alone, more than 16,400 streets are under reconstruction, with close to 60 streets being upgraded every day. Phase One of the Lahore Development Plan has been completed, while Phase Two has crossed 76 percent completion. Planning for the third phase is already underway.

Cities remain the engines of modern economies and Punjab, home to nearly 60 percent of Pakistan’s urban population, increasingly appears to recognize that economic growth, climate resilience and social stability all begin at the street level.Local event listings

Cities remain the engines of modern economies and Punjab, home to nearly 60 percent of Pakistan’s urban population, increasingly appears to recognize that economic growth, climate resilience and social........

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