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Sinar Daily
25-06-2025
- Business
- Sinar Daily
Unveiling Kota Madani: Inside Putrajaya's RM4 billion smart, sustainable, car-free city
PUTRAJAYA – The RM4 billion Kota Madani development project in Precinct 19, Putrajaya, is poised to be one of Malaysia's most ambitious and transformative urban undertakings. Announced under the Madani framework by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, the project is designed to reinforce Putrajaya's identity as a people-centric, sustainable federal capital. The project, announced under the Madani framework by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, is designed to reinforce Putrajaya's identity as a people-centric, sustainable federal capital. What is Kota Madani? Spanning 41.28 hectares, the high-density township will not only house 10,000 government quarters and up to 35,000 residents but also integrate artificial intelligence (AI), green mobility and next-generation digital infrastructure into every aspect of city life. According to Putrajaya Corporation (PPj) president Datuk Fadlun Mak Ujud, the estimated RM4 billion development cost will be funded via a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) under the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) model. Putrajaya Holdings (PJH) has been appointed as the master developer, with the project structured under a Build–Lease–Maintain–Transfer (BLMT) model to ensure long-term sustainability and reduce the financial burden on the government. The township will feature high-density vertical housing, AI-supported building management systems, high-speed digital connectivity and a green mobility ecosystem that includes EV infrastructure, cycling lanes and pedestrian-friendly streets. Photo illustrated by Sinar Daily. 'The government has decided to proceed with this project using PFI and the Cabinet has approved PJH as the implementing body for the project, with a development budget of RM4 billion sanctioned by the government,' Fadlun said during a media briefing. He clarified that the Public-Private Partnership Unit (UKAS) under the Prime Minister's Department will oversee all expenditures through a rigorous value assessment process. 'The government always considers cost-saving measures, but the objective of providing facilities, especially for civil servants and those working in Putrajaya, remains a priority,' he said. According to the Malaysian Institute of Planners president Datin Mazrina Abdul Khalid, the inclusion of these 'green' elements forms the core foundation of the township's design philosophy. When Does It Start? Phase 1 of the project, scheduled to commence in the third quarter of 2025, will comprise approximately 3,000 high-rise residential units and an eight-story secondary school. The groundbreaking ceremony is scheduled to take place this Thursday, officially launching the construction process. These initial components are expected to be completed and fully operational by the end of 2027. Tenders for contractors and stakeholders will also be opened soon, with PJH conducting a transparent open bidding process. Contracts will be awarded based on merit, particularly the bidder's technical capabilities, experience with green development and ability to deliver smart-city infrastructure in line with Putrajaya's vision. Kota Madani will be developed in three main phases. According to Putrajaya Corporation (PPj) president Datuk Fadlun Mak Ujud, the estimated RM4 billion development cost will be funded via a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) under the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) model. Phase 1 (including Sub-Phases 1A and 1B) will focus on initial housing and educational infrastructure. The subsequent phases will roll out more housing units and community services, bringing the total to around 10,000 quarters once fully complete. The development is expected to set a benchmark for urban planning not only in Putrajaya but across Malaysia, offering a scalable model that combines digital, environmental and social priorities in a unified, livable ecosystem. A Staggering RM4 Billion Cost But what exactly accounts for the RM4 billion cost? Fadlun clarified that beyond construction, the figure includes integrated digital and AI systems, sustainable transportation infrastructure, energy-efficient housing design and lifetime maintenance of the government quarters. The township will feature high-density vertical housing, AI-supported building management systems, high-speed digital connectivity and a green mobility ecosystem that includes EV infrastructure, cycling lanes and pedestrian-friendly streets. Key public amenities such as a health clinic, fire station, police station, mosque,and financial institutions will be placed within walkable proximity to residential blocks, creating a self-contained township. The development also integrates energy-efficient features and low-carbon initiatives to support environmentally responsible urban living. According to the Malaysian Institute of Planners president Datin Mazrina Abdul Khalid, the inclusion of these 'green' elements forms the core foundation of the township's design philosophy. Despite the hefty RM4 billion price tag, under the BLMT model, the government does not directly bear the cost of maintenance, which will be financed and managed over the long term as part of the private investment agreement. The repayment schedule and oversight will also be coordinated by UKAS. A Car-Free Environment While it may seem like any other residential development project, Kota Madani is set to break new strides in Malaysia's residential landscape with a car-free concept. As Mazrina further elaborated, vehicles will be permitted within the precinct, but their movement will be entirely underground. "Cars will immediately descend to the basement when they enter Kota Madani and will be parked in a three-story underground parking structure. "Above that, starting from the podium level, every area is a car-free zone reserved solely for pedestrians,' she said. This layout allows residents to experience everyday life without the hazards or disruptions of vehicular traffic. Schools, mosques, community hubs, shops and recreational areas are all within walking distance. 'Imagine being able to walk from home to your child's school, to the market, to the playground, to the community centre or to the mosque without crossing any roads or traffic lanes,' Mazrina quipped. The goal is to ensure that all essential amenities are just a ten to fifteen minute walk away. Kota Madani is not only people-focused but also technologically advanced as it will incorporate smart-city features including artificial intelligence for surveillance and facilities management. Sustainable practices such as solar energy use, rainwater harvesting, rooftop gardens and community allotments are also integrated into the design, reinforcing its low-carbon ambition. Kota Madani, Beyond the Horizon Federal Territories Minister Datuk Seri Dr Zaliha Mustafa affirmed that the name 'Kota Madani' will be retained, in alignment with the aspirations of the current Unity Government. Federal Territories Minister Datuk Seri Dr Zaliha Mustafa affirmed that the name 'Kota Madani' will be retained, in alignment with the aspirations of the current Unity Government. She said that the project transcends political cycles and is deeply rooted in a forward-thinking, inclusive development framework. 'The CHASE City Healthy, Advanced, Safe and Eco-Friendly has been comprehensively incorporated, as introduced by the Federal Territories Department. "If we successfully implement this concept in Putrajaya, it may be expanded to other locations,' she said. Mazrina, who is also the Urban SCALE Studio Sdn Bhd managing director, echoed this sentiment, stating that Kota Madani's masterplan draws inspiration from Malaysia's architectural heritage while embracing modern urban design principles. 'Kota Madani goes beyond conventional housing. It is a forward-looking model for smart, sustainable and inclusive development,' she said.
Barnama
24-06-2025
- Business
- Barnama
Kota MADANI Project To Begin In 3Q, Costing RM4 Bln
REGION - CENTRAL > NEWS PUTRAJAYA, June 24 (Bernama) -- The phased development of Kota MADANI in Precinct 19, Putrajaya — a government quarters project — is set to begin in the third quarter (3Q) of this year, with an estimated total cost of RM4 billion. Putrajaya Corporation (PPj) president, Datuk Fadlun Mak Ujud, said the project is a federal government initiative following an in-depth study which identified an urgent need for affordable housing, particularly for civil servants. "The government has agreed for the development to proceed under a Private Finance Initiative (PFI), and Putrajaya Holdings Sdn Bhd (PjH), a subsidiary of Petronas, has been appointed to implement the project. The development cost approved by the government is around RM4 billion," he told reporters during a Kota MADANI briefing attended by Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Federal Territories), Datuk Seri Dr Zaliha Mustafa, here today. bootstrap slideshow Fadlun said all development costs will be detailed in a definitive agreement and thoroughly scrutinised by the Public Private Partnership Unit (UKAS), including through value engineering processes to ensure cost efficiency and effectiveness of public investment. "This project is based on the build, lease, maintain and transfer (BLMT) concept, meaning the government does not directly bear the maintenance costs of the quarters but pays through a long-term lease as set by the government. Therefore, the financial burden is significantly lower compared to current models. "This is the approach being introduced for the development of quarters, and the repayment period will also be determined by UKAS. The government is carefully reviewing all implementation costs of this project," he said. Fadlun added that the first phase of the development, beginning this September, will comprise 3,000 residential units under phases 1A and 1B, along with a vertical school expected to be completed by 2027 — allowing educational facilities to operate concurrently with the completion of housing. He said an open tender process will soon be carried out by PjH, stressing that the government will not be directly involved in contractor selection but will closely monitor overall costs and the approved budget ceiling. Occupying 41.28 hectares, Kota MADANI will feature 10,000 high-density vertical residential units for more than 30,000 residents.
Telegraph
14-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Adam Curtis's thrilling, maddening and soul-destroying portrait of a faithless, jaded nation
To try to explain what Adam Curtis's latest documentary series is about is like trying to build an igloo out of jelly. In one sense, Shifty (BBC iPlayer) has a simple premise – a jaunty yet thumpingly depressing trot through 20 years of British politics and economics (1979-1999), from Thatcher and monetarism to Blair and the Private Finance Initiative. It is, as the blurb has it, about how 'extreme money and hyper-individualism… undermined the fundamental structures of mass democracy'; it's about how and why British society is now so fragmented, atomised and siloed. Yet that barely scratches the surface of this gloriously obtuse series. It's like being talked at for six hours by a coked-up bipolar genius at an aggressively loud house party. It is a thrilling, maddening, brilliant and soul-destroying portrait of a faithless, jaded nation. As the five episodes take us chronologically through 20 years of British economic policy, leaning heavily on Thatcher's premiership, Shifty has a more traditional shape than many of Curtis's other works (Hypernormalisation, Can't Get You Out of My Head). It also does not feature Curtis's languid, oft-parodied voiceover, relying instead on his trademark stark-white subtitles to give some shape to his traditional carnival of scintillatingly edited archive footage. There is less of the nightmarish incongruousness that marks his work, but it's no less chilling and disorienting for it. There is still plenty, however, of Curtis's mind-boggling leaps. In the first episode, introducing us to Thatcher's policy of monetarism – reduce the amount of money circulating, inflation falls, wages stabilise, industry booms – you'll spend a long time scratching your head wondering what links the death of the Irish author JG Farrell, the remains of a Second World War fighter pilot found in a bog in Sheppey, a transgender dog called Bruno, the National Front and the cheese and onion crisp production line at the Golden Wonder factory. Each episode is like a Magic Eye picture – you just have to relax your eyes and stare and stare and stare. It all comes clear eventually. Well, some of it. The rest of the series is a phantasmagoria of 1980s and 1990s home video and documentary and news footage, with Stephen Hawking, the Old Kent Road, hairdressers, the Duke of Westminster and house parties becoming surreal recurring themes. The picture it paints of the UK, then and now, is utterly bleak, with our institutions being shown as at best hollow. The police come out particularly badly – anyone wincing at Donald Trump's recent heavy-handed approach to protestors will be agog at the scenes of police violence here, while one sequence in which detectives in Reading interview a female rape victim is horrifying. Despite this, Curtis finds an impish gallows humour in the decaying remains of 150 years of British exceptionalism. The first image we see, for instance, is Jimmy Savile introducing some schoolchildren to Thatcher, while a segment on the synthetised pop music of the 1980s warns us not to trust the past because it can be edited, remixed and repackaged – before launching into a pastiche of Curtis's documentaries. Those unconvinced by him will find it all simplistic and cynical, but Curtis has never claimed to be a historian. Instead, Shifty is a remarkable, unreliable and potent chronicle of a society in freefall. 'We are living [Thatcher's] version of Churchill's version of British history,' says Patrick Cosgrave, Thatcher's closest adviser. Shifty is Curtis's version.
Daily Mirror
03-06-2025
- Daily Mirror
'Hated' £2.2bn tunnel in the UK to temporarily close just months after opening
The controversial Silvertown Tunnel, which cost around £2.2bn, has temporarily closed due to maintenance and snagging works - just two months after its grand opening Drivers have been warned after a mega £2.2 billion tunnel, that promised to slash congestion and delays, has temporarily closed. Despite opening just two months ago, the hated Silvertown Tunnel has closed for 17 nights for general maintenance and snagging works. During the southbound-only closures - buses will be diverted via the Blackwall Tunnel. When both directions are closed, buses will operate a split-service that terminates at Canning Town and North Greenwich. "TfL will look to ensure bus services can continue to run where possible and has been communicating with drivers about the closures and weekly customer emails," a spokesperson said. Drivers will be advised through email communications to use alternative routes like the London Underground or route 108. The closures started on Friday, May 30 and will last until Sunday, June 22. Silvertown tunnel closures - the full list Friday, May 30: 22:00–06:00 (Southbound only) Saturday, May 31: 22:00–06:00 (Southbound only) Sunday, June 1: 22:00–05:00 (Southbound only) Monday, June 2: 22:00–05:00 (Southbound only) Tuesday, June 3: 22:00–05:00 (Southbound only) Wednesday, June 4: 22:00–05:00 (Both directions closed) Thursday, June 5: 22:00–05:00 (Northbound only) Friday, June 6: 22:00–06:00 (Both directions closed) Saturday, June 7: 22:00–06:00 (Both directions closed) Sunday, June 8: 22:00–05:00 (Both directions closed) Friday, June 13: 22:00–06:00 (Both directions closed) Saturday, June 14: 22:00–06:00 (Both directions closed) Sunday, June 15: 22:00–05:00 (Both directions closed) Wednesday, June 18: 22:00–05:00 (Southbound only) Friday, June 20: 22:00–06:00 (Both directions closed) Saturday, June 21: 22:00–06:00 (Both bores closed) Sunday, June 22: 22:00–05:00 (Both directions closed) The 1.4km tunnel - which opened on April 7, 2025, links Silvertown to the Greenwich Peninsula in east London and aims to reduce traffic in the area by making peak-time journeys faster and more reliable. After its grand opening, the average trip across the river was slashed by up to 20 minutes. Funded with a Private Finance Initiative (PFI) against future earnings for £2.2 billion, the tunnel was met with unwavering criticism ever since its planning approval back in 2018. While TfL argued the nearby Blackwall Tunnel was 'never designed' for the levels of traffic now whizzing through the Big Smoke - residents slammed the decision to allow Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs) to use the new tunnel - meaning they no longer have to travel over the Dartford Crossing. Campaigners have slammed this rule, arguing they'll be subject to gas-guzzling vehicles travelling past their 'schools and kids', worsening the area's air quality. TfL has clapped back, saying it has been monitoring air quality for the past five years across five boroughs and will continue to monitor them for at least three years after the tunnel is opened. "This is to make sure the tunnel user charge levels are working and the project meets its objectives," TFL said. Silvertown Tunnel has resulted in more public transport offerings, with 21 zero-emission buses an hour travelling in each direction between 7am and 7pm Monday-Friday. However, the project was slammed again after it was revealed how almost £2 million was being spent on a three-year 'bike bus' contract that will allow cyclists to travel through the tunnel. The revelation came after TfL prohibited cycling in the tunnel for 'safety reasons' - meaning those on their bike will have to hop off and take a shuttle to cross the tunnel. find out if you're eligible for a discount here.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
MP takes health centre fight to Westminster
Dudley MP Sonia Kumar has taken the fight for answers on the future of a Sedgley health centre to Parliament. Ms Kumar presented a petition containing over 1,600 names to the House of Commons, telling MPs the number of signatures shows the strength of feeling among people in Dudley. Campaigners are calling on Dudley Council to finalise a deal to keep services at the Ladies Walk Health Centre and library by renewing a lease on the property, which is set to expire in March 2026. Ms Kumar told MPs: 'This facility is a vital community hub and a treasured lifeline for local people accessing essential care. 'The petitioners request that the House of Commons urge the government to communicate urgently with the owners of the Ladies Walk centre property, Dudley Council and the NHS to secure the centre and stop its closure.' Campaigners fear, if the lease is not renewed, services will be relocated. They are calling for the council to either renew the lease or buy the centre under a compulsory purchase order. Dudley council's leader, Cllr Patrick Harley, says the situation has moved on substantially and negotiations are underway. Clr Harley said: 'We are all around the table and things seem to be moving at pace. Talks are ongoing, and I am confident we will come to an agreement at some point and things will stay as they are. 'We need to let the people who know what they are doing negotiate a good deal.' The centre was opened 25 years ago, it was constructed from 72 steel-framed modules which were craned into position. The centre was the first Private Finance Initiative (PFI) project to be constructed off-site. Under a PFI deal the private sector pays to construct public buildings and the public sector pays to use the building over a long-term contract. A public meeting to discuss progress on the Ladies Walk centre will take place at the Parish Church of All Saints, Vicar Street, Sedgley, on May 21, starting at 6.30pm. Anyone wishing to attend the meeting must pre-book at
