Zoning violation: Private school de-sealed on assurance

Sohail Janjua dismissed the reports as false saying that the school was sealed early in the morning before the session

LAHORE: A private school in Johar Town sealed on Wednesday for not paying commercialisation fee was de-sealed after the administration gave in writing an assurance to the Lahore Development Authority (LDA) that they would clear the dues soon.

The brief episode caused inconvenience to some parents. They had to return to the Askari Public School sometime after dropping their children in the morning on watching private television channels running a report about children ‘left locked inside’ the school by the LDA team that sealed it.

LDA spokesperson Sohail Janjua dismissed the reports as false saying that the school was sealed early in the morning before it was in session. “We seal buildings only early in the morning. The same procedure was adopted in this case,” he said.

He said it was illegal to operate commercial concerns in zones set aside for residential use without prior approval and payment of a commerialisation fee. “It is also necessary to obtain a no objection certificate (NOC) from neighbours,” he said. He said the school had not submitted the NoC to the LDA.

Janjua said only the main entrance of the school was sealed to ensure that the parents take their children back home on seeing it. He said a back door at the premises could still be used to enter or leave. He said an official was sent to de-seal the facility after the school principal visited the LDA office and submitted in writing that they would clear the dues soon.

School principal Mr Amir said the entrance was sealed such that there was some room between the two doors letting children and the staff enter and leave the premises. He said the school was operating in a building also used for residential purposes. The back door was not in school’s use, he added.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 18^th, 2016.