Anti-encroachment drive launched in Rawalpindi

RDA, CCB retrieve encroached land while RMC issues notice to shopkeepers

RAWALPINDI: An anti-encroachment drive has been launched in different parts of the garrison city, falling under different administrative bodies, to recover state property.

In this regard, a drive launched by the Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) saw 12 kanals of land being retrieved from encroachers in Mohanpura, Saddar Road, Kashmiri Bazaar and Gunjmandi areas.



Simultaneously, the Rawalpindi Municipal Corporation (RMC) has issued notices to shopkeepers in the different parts of the city to remove voluntarily remove encroachment. Failure to comply with the directives over the next fortnight would see the RMC take decisive action in accordance with the law.

The drives, which are part of the province-wide anti-encroachment operations directed by Prime Minister Imran Khan, the Punjab government has also directed the Rawalpindi assistant commissioners to identify and list all the encroached land in the city.

Housing Urban Development and Public Health Engineering Department secretary had directed authorities in Rawalpindi to take action against encroachment nearly two weeks ago.

RDA Director General Rana Akbar Hayat, while chairing a meeting, instructed the authority’s directors, senior magistrates and law officers to start the anti-encroachment drive. They were directed to take strict action against encroachment under the Punjab Development of Cities Act 1976, without any fear or favour within the areas controlled by the RDA.

In a similar operation, the Chaklala Cantonment Board (CCB) wrested control of commercial plot worth millions of rupees from the possession of land mafia on Sunday.



The land was recovered in the commercial market of the Chaklala Scheme-III area.

According to details, CCB anti-encroachment team in collaboration with the police under the supervision of Additional Cantonment Executive Officer Naveed Nawaz conducted operation early on Sunday morning and retrieved the plot from the illegal occupation of encroachers.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 8^th, 2018.