On Saturday November 18, President Emomali Rahmon participated in inauguration ceremonies for a number of economic and social facilities in the northern city of Buston (formerly Chkalovsk), according to the Tajik president’s official website. 

Thus, Rahmon participated in a ceremony for completion of the project aiming at rehabilitation of the water supply system in the city of Buston.

The project was implemented on the basis of a trilateral agreement between the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Khojagii Manziliyu-Kommunali (KMK) and North Regional Water Company (NRWC).  

25.532 million somoni were reportedly provided for implementation of the project, including 13.293 million somoni provided in a form of loans and 12.240 million somoni provided in a form of grants. 

Launched in March 2014, the project targeted six cities and districts in the Sughd province.  To-date, 80.659 million somoni have reportedly been spent for rehabilitation of water supply systems in the cities of Buston and Guliston (formerly Qairoqqum) and the Bobojon-Ghafourov district and their residents are now provided with safe drinking water.  

Rehabilitation of water supply systems in the cities of Istiqlol (formerly Taboshar), Konibodom and Isfara is still under way.  

While in Buston, Rahmon also inaugurated the pharmaceutical enterprise Pharm Sughd LLC.   

Besides, Rahmon also got acquainted with a hydroponic greenhouse, a workshop for producing semi-finished goods from basaltic plates and designs of affordable residential buildings produced by Elegant LLC.   

Buston (formerly Chkalovsk) is a city in the northern province of Sughd.  It is located in the Bobojon-Ghafourov district.  Buston is a city of provincial subordination, administratively subordinated to the provincial capital of Khujand.  The population of Buston is reportedly estimated at 35,000.  As a result of its involvement in the processing of uranium ore mined nearby, Buston was a closed city until the collapse of the USSR.

The Government of Tajikistan decided to rename Chkalovsk Buston on February 1, 2016.  It was the last town in Tajikistan with a Russian name.