Committee summons land conversion record

Officials questioned about residential plots converted to commercial

HYDERABAD: The local government secretary, heading an inquiry committee probing the conversion of residential plots into commercial, has sought records from the relevant authorities of the land converted during the last four decades. The committee, formed on the order of Supreme Court-mandated water commission, gave two days to the Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA) and Hyderabad Development Authority (HDA) to submit the records.

Chaired by secretary Khalid Haider Shah, the committee held its initial meeting in Hyderabad on Sunday. The secretary asked HDA official Bashir Awan to explain under which law the plots were converted from residential to commercial.

He also asked how many plots in Hyderabad had been converted since 1979.

Awan, however, could not answer the questions and sought two days' time to come up with an explanation. He was also asked to inform the committee in the next hearing which authority has been giving the approvals and the list of beneficiaries of the conversions.



"If drainage, parking and other civic necessities were always given consideration before issuing approvals of the commercial buildings, Hyderabad wouldn't have been facing the problems which we see today," Hyderabad Commissioner Muhammad Abbass Baloch, who is part of the two-member committee, observed. "Unfortunately, because of some selfish elements, the government departments and the elected government are facing questions over their performance."

Baloch directed Awan to come prepared in the next meeting. "We all need to work with honesty and sincerity for the development of Hyderabad," he emphasised.

Earlier this month, the water commission stayed work on the on-going commercial projects while barring the SBCA and HDA from issuing new approvals. The commission also ordered that the possession in the completed projects should not be handed over to the allottees until the particular project obtained the completion certificate.

ABAD

Zulfiqar Farooqi, convener of Association of Builders and Developers' (ABAD) Hyderabad SBCA Committee, while talking to The Express Tribune conveyed ABAD's grievance that the committee has still not called them for the hearing. "The honourable commission has directed the committee to take all the stakeholders on board. But the committee hasn't approached us [ABAD] yet," he lamented.

"Rather than calling individual beneficiaries [builders] one by one it will be advisable to take the association on board so that the stance of builders and developers can be put on record in a meticulous manner."



According to him, the construction work on around 150 building projects has come to a grind following the commission's order. He contended that the construction industry as a whole, including the labourers, allottees, manufacturers and sellers of the construction material are suffering from the moratorium.

The commission gave four weeks to the committee to conduct the investigation and submit its findings. So far 16 days have passed.

The Hyderabad commissioner told The Express Tribune that the committee will conduct two or three more hearings. He said they planned to call the beneficiary builders through the SBCA in the next meeting. Responding to a question, he said the committee will consider calling ABAD as well.

On its part, ABAD demands that the construction on the on-going projects, which have obtained the due approvals, being built on roads which are minimum 60 feet wide should be allowed. It also calls for a comprehensive policy for the commercial schemes which shall be formed while keeping in view the demand for housing. The association also wants to see streamlining of the government agency regulating the sector and unification of the authority regulating the commercialisation policy.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, November 26^th, 2018.