‘Illegal’ marriage halls get lifeline

Owners have five years to wind up businesses failing to meet regulations

LAHORE: In light of a Supreme Court of Pakistan (SCP) order, the Lahore Development Authority (LDA) has approved various amendments in its building regulations to regularise existing marriage halls and marquees in the provincial capital.

The LDA governing body, on Thursday, has also given conditional approval for five years to some banquet halls which did not fulfill requisite criteria. To minimise losses, the authority has given this time to banquet hall owners to wind up their business if they cannot meet certain requirements.

Following the apex court hearing in a suo moto case earlier in January, the LDA declared all marriage hall businesses in the provincial capital as illegal. The only exceptions were nine recently constructed banquet halls, marquees and event complexes in posh areas of the city.



Earlier, the authority had directed owners of these marriage halls to shut down their businesses within 30 days and cancel all events booked beyond the deadline of January 31. The authority also warned citizens, through media advertisements, to make alternate arrangements if they mistakenly booked their functions at any of these illegal marriage halls. However, upon strong agitation from marriage hall owners, the business community and orders of the apex court, the authority has to amend its building regulations. However, opposition parties termed such a development, ahead of general elections, as pre-poll rigging.

On the directions of Lahore High Court (LHC), the governing body also allowed the establishment of a graveyard in Mustafa Town Housing Scheme on a 13-kanal land. The property was initially earmarked for educational purposes.

The governing body also allowed the free commercialisation of 43-kanals of Red Crescent Medical College on Multan Road in Patokai tehsil of District Kasur.

The body approved revised estimates of Rs1.75 billion for the construction of a ‘park and shop arena’ which will be constructed over 130 kanals in Johar Town. The authority gave its nod to the establishment of a separate directorate to run administrative affairs of the project.

The authority approved the qualification prerequisite for appointing WASA managing director. Any officer sent on deputation by the Punjab government or three of the senior most deputy managing directors of WASA can be appointed as managing director. The governing body meeting also signed off on the qualifications for existing drivers and mechanics working in LDA.

The governing body meeting was chaired by the Punjab Chief Minister’s Adviser Khawaja Ahmad Hassaan, which was attended by MPA Bao Muhammad Akhtar, LDA Director General Shakeel Ahmad, WASA Managing Director Syed Zahid Aziz, LDA Additional Director General Zeeshan Shabeer Rana, Chief Town Planner Syed Nadeem Akhtar Zaidi and other senior government officials.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 1^st, 2018.