Sindh’s Senior Minister for Information, Transport, and Mass Transit, Sharjeel Inam Memon, presided over a ceremony in Tando Jam where ownership rights for newly built houses were conferred upon flood-affected families under the Sindh Peoples Housing Scheme.
Memon hailed the event as a testament to the Pakistan Peoples Party’s commitment to public welfare. He described the Sindh Peoples Housing Scheme as the world’s largest residential development project, providing 2.1 million families with free houses.
The project, initiated on the directives of Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, aims to provide permanent housing to those displaced by the 2022 floods. Memon acknowledged initial skepticism regarding the project’s scale but emphasized Bhutto Zardari’s unwavering resolve. International collaboration, including the World Bank, facilitated the scheme’s implementation.
Uniquely, ownership is allocated to female heads of families, empowering women and promoting family stability. Financial assistance was also provided to beneficiaries who resided in camps after losing their homes.
Memon compared the project’s magnitude to the 800,000 houses built after the Nepal earthquake and suggested including Sindh’s project in the Guinness Book of World Records.
He highlighted other provincial initiatives, like Sindh’s free CyberKnife cancer treatment hospital and solar installations in the new houses, contrasting them with the alleged inactivity of other parties. A new employment initiative, ‘Maash,’ was also announced.
Memon paid tribute to President Asif Ali Zardari on his 70th birthday, commending his political legacy including the 18th Amendment and the Benazir Income Support Programme. He highlighted Zardari’s economic focus, which resulted in Pakistan becoming a wheat-exporting country.
He emphasized the Peoples Party’s history of public service, challenging critics to demonstrate similar achievements.
MPA Imdad Pitafi lauded Bhutto Zardari’s vision for the housing project, while Hyderabad Commissioner Fayyaz Abbasi reported 99% completion of the 45,000 houses planned for Hyderabad Division, highlighting their disaster-resilient design and international acclaim.
MPA Qasim Siraj Soomro and other officials were present as ownership documents were distributed among the women beneficiaries.