Repeated violations: CDA seals illegal high-rises in Sector E-11 for third time

Civic body looking to take legal action against owners of the plazas

ISLAMABAD: The civic body has sealed, for a third time on Thursday, seven high-rise towers and grounds in the Gorla area of Sector E-11 for violating the by-laws of the body.

The body is also seeking arrest warrants for the owners of these towers for unilaterally breaking the seals placed on these towers on multiple occasions.

The Capital Development Authority’s (CDA) Building Control Section-II (BCS-II) conducted the operation in collaboration with Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) magistrate and enforcement staff of the body on Thursday.

The civic body said that this was not the first time that the CDA had sealed these towers, noting that owners of the high-rises have continuously disregarded the law and have broken the seals on multiple occasions.

The body further said that they have also lodged first information reports (FIR) with the police against the builders but to little avail.

Now, CDA officials said, they have decided to pursue the matter to the fullest extent of the law by placing the matter before Inspector General of Police (IGP), seeking arrest warrants for violators and imposing heavy fines on them.

CDA has also sealed an illegal mineral water factory which was filling unsafe water in used bottles.

Earlier in January this year, the Enforcement Directorate and Building Control Section of CDA had sealed some buildings and commercial plazas in Sector E-11 after they were constructed without securing prior approval of its building plans from the CDA. The operation was carried out under the supervision of CDA’s senior special magistrate.

However, these buildings and plazas were reopened by their owners illegally and without permission from either the civic body or the district administration.

But with some of the towers reopened, the CDA is now mulling legal action against the owners.

In the past, massive illegal construction took place in Sector E-11 with a number of high-rises and multi-storeyed commercial structures dotting the landscape. The city officials had appeared helpless in stopping the mushrooming growth of the buildings.

Of all multi-storied buildings in Sector E-11, the layout plans of only three have been approved by the CDA.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 7^th, 2018.