LAHORE, 4 October, 2026 (Ghufran): Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif has digitally inaugurated five road projects under the Punjab Public-Private Partnership Authority, with the management and operation of the roads handed over to the private sector. The transfer of these projects to the PPP model is expected to generate Rs22 billion in revenue for the Punjab government, while modern electronic toll plazas will also be established on the roads. The projects include the 80-kilometre Muridke-Narowal Road, 33-kilometre Shakargarh-Narowal Road, 97-kilometre Faisalabad Ring Road, 52-kilometre Faisalabad-Sahianwala Road and 56-kilometre Faisalabad-Samundri-Rajana Road. Under the arrangement, private contractors will collect tolls linked with the National Highway Authority for seven years and will also be responsible for the maintenance, construction and repair of the respective roads. Senior Minister and Vice Chairperson of the Punjab Public-Private Partnership Authority Marriyum Aurangzeb briefed the meeting on the projects and said several other initiatives, including hostels, hospitals, parks, sports grounds, waste-to-energy facilities, parking plazas, tourism, water supply and recycling projects, were also in the pipeline under the PPP framework. Effluent treatment plants for toxic industrial wastewater, along with tourism and food street projects, will also be developed through the PPP model. The processing time for projects under the Punjab Public-Private Partnership Authority has been reduced to six months from nearly two years. Four more roads, including the 42-kilometre Bahawalpur-Yazman Road, 43-kilometre Yazman-Ahmadpur East Road, 28-kilometre Raiwind-Changa Manga Road and 26-kilometre Gajjumata-Kasur Road, will also be shifted to the PPP model. Water and sanitation projects in Chakwal and Kasur, a Time Travel Park in Lahore, a foot-and-mouth disease vaccine protection plant, a parking plaza and multimodal commercial facility at Badami Bagh bus terminal, and a bridge at Sahuka Pattan over the River Sutlej are also planned under public-private partnerships. Black soldier fly larvae facilities will be established at fruit and vegetable markets for solid waste management, while the management of 100 sports grounds and other facilities will also be undertaken through the PPP framework. A modern truck terminal will be developed in Faisalabad, while girls’ and boys’ hostels will be constructed at Punjab University and 28 other public-sector universities, with hostels at three medical colleges also planned under the PPP model. Fourteen hostels for working women will be established across the province, while the Nursing Hostel at Sahiwal Teaching Hospital and Faridia Park Sahiwal will also be developed and operated through public-private partnerships. Projects worth up to Rs500 million can be approved and implemented through the divisional PPP working party headed by the commissioner. Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif appreciated the efforts of Finance Secretary Mujahid Sher Dil, Communications Secretary Raja Jahangir Anwar, PPP Authority CEO Dr Zeeshan Hanif and their teams in advancing the projects.