Senators summon CDA officials over Sector G-14/3 in Islamabad permissions

The area is still under development with some state land still under occupation

A Senate panel has summoned officials of the civic agency over the development of housing in Sector G-14/3 of the federal capital even though there were a host of issues in the area while less than 10 per cent of the plots have been handed over.

This was disclosed during a meeting of the Senate Functional Committee on Government Assurances which met at the Parliament House on Tuesday with Senator Tahir Bizinjo in the chair. The matter had been raised by Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) Senator Khushbakht Shujaat in October 2018.

The committee reviewed in detail the issue of granting permission allottees in Sector G-14/3 to build their houses. The Federal Government Employees Housing Foundation (FGEHF) director general told the committee that there are a total of 5,486 plots carved out in Sector G-14/3.

Of these, the FGEHF said that they have so far given possession of 680 plots to allottees who had paid all their dues.

The FGEHF official told the committee that those who want to start building their houses can obtain the requisite no-objection certificates (NOCs). In this regard, the official said that NOCs have been issued for construction on eight plots.

The official, though, conceded that there were a few issues in Sector G-14/2 and G-14/3.

The committee was told that they were still working on providing basic amenities such as water, power and gas in the area apart from building link roads.

He added that they have retrieved most of the land from encroachers and land grabbers in the area and around 80 per cent of all land has been given to the contractor to develop it.

However, the FGEHF official said that they have to pay the contractor, for which they require funds.

“As soon as some land is cleared, work starts on it,” the official said.

The committee was further told that the Capital Development Authority (CDA) has the layout plan of the area. At this, the functional committee decided to summon the relevant officials of CDA in the next meeting of the committee.

Consent for awarding sub-sectors of G-14, including G-14/1, G-14/2, G-14/3 and G-14/4, were announced on January 29, 2005, at a cost of Rs5.9 million per Kanal. Infrastructure work in the sector was taken up by the FGEHF. The built-up property award (BUP) for G-14/3 was announced in 2014 and land was handed over to a contractor in January 2016 for development.

Back in 2017, the foundation had claimed that it had handed over 680 plots in the area in two tranches and that it hoped to hand over possession of a further 400 plots soon.

Jobs quota

Discussing the issue of jobs quota raised by Establishment Division in charge on January 19, 2016, regarding an amendment to the existing law, Senator Bizenjo said that the relevant minister had assured the committee that the issue of jobs quota would be soon presented in the cabinet for an executive decision on it.

However, he lamented that this had yet to happen.

The committee also expressed its anger at the absence of the law minister, with the chairman of the committee noting that he should have been present in the meeting.

Law Ministry Secretary Abdul Shakoor Paracha explained that the law minister’s absence the result of a cancelled flight.

He added that since this is an amendment to the constitution, the parliament has to decide on it. In this regard, he pointed to a judgment of the Supreme Court.

The summary sent by the Establishment Division, it should be withdrawn and, in light of the court’s verdict, it should be converted into a draft amendment law, he suggested.

At this, the establishment secretary said that they will sit with the law ministry and, in light of the court’s verdict, would finalise a draft within the next fortnight.

Law Secretary Justice (retired) Abdul Shakoor Paracha suggested that it would be better if the establishment division takes feedback from the provinces on the amendment and incorporates it into its draft.

“This is not such a simple thing, we will have to find the middle way out,” he said, adding that parliament will then have to pass the constitutional amendment.

Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Ali Muhammad said that if there was an amendment was for the betterment of the country and its citizens, they would request the opposition parties to support it.

“We hope that the opposition, keeping in view the public good, will support us [in passing the amendment],” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 20^th, 2019.