Thalian housing project: Parliamentary panel directs water, road access to scheme

NA panel on housing directs officials to speed up land acquisition

ISLAMABAD: A parliamentary panel on Friday directed the Federal Government Employees Housing Foundation (FGEHF) to ensure access to water and the motorway to the Thalian Joint Venture Housing Project  (TJVHP) before it is formally launched.

The TJVHP is located just south of Islamabad just off the M-2 Motorway that leads to Lahore.

During a meeting of the National Assembly Standing Committee on Housing and Works on Friday, chaired by MNA Haji Akram Ansari, the meeting reviewed availability of utilities there.

FGEHF director general briefed the panel that a feasibility on the availability of water had been carried out by Geo-physics Department of the Quaid-e-Azam University. The feasibility determined that there was ample amount of water available for the project. To better supply water to the project, the FGEHF official said that the foundation planned to build a mini dam to store water. Moreover, tube wells would be installed which would supply water to the housing project.

He added that development work on the project would remain suspended till concerns of the committee are addressed.

In this regard, the parliamentary panel decided to invite the joint venture partner of the project, officials from the National Highway Authority and FGEHF for a comprehensive briefing on the issue.

The committee also directed the housing foundation to increase quota for widows of deceased federal government employees from one per cent to three per cent keeping in view their hardship.

Land acquisition

The committee also directed officials to speed up the land acquisition and data verification process of potential members of housing schemes in Sector F-14 and F-15.

The committee was further told that lists and data (quota and category wise) of membership drive for phase-II had been updated on the FGEHF website while consent letters have also been issued to members in categories 1-3.

He added that development work would commence after acquiring physical possession of the land is acquired from the district administration in Islamabad.

Once possession is obtained the project is  expected to be completed within two years.

WITH ADDITIONAL INPUT FROM APP

Published in The Express Tribune, January 7^th, 2017.