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The report, a copy of which is available with The Express Tribune, noted that hotels, shades, warehouses, marriage halls, shops, showrooms, private offices, nurseries, roadside hotels, houses and commercial spaces and private car parks have been built at 303 points.
Moreover, the report notes that it is not just private institutions who have indulged in this practice, but government officials in the police and the municipal corporation, as well as financers of various political parties, have also been involved in this illegal act for the past 35 years.
The report further reveals that there are over 20 small-to-medium sized encroachments in the Sherpao Colony while Millat Colony had 13, Ansari Market Scheme had 31, Gunjmandi Fruit Market had 19, Ghazni Colony had 15, Asghar Mall Scheme had 19, Saidpur Road Scheme had 19, Eidgah Scheme had 15, Dosehra Ground Scheme had 15, Mohanpura Scheme had 26, Civil Lines had 66 and Saddar City Road had 44 large-sized encroachments.
Amongst the shocking discoveries is that a traffic police warden receives Rs7,000 from stalls and shops set up on the footpath in front of Gulistan Cinema on the main road.
In Sherpao colony, a number of shops have been set up after sheds were erected outside shops in Sherpao colony.
Near Committee Chowk, a traffic police post has been encroached on.
A municipal auto workshop and a mosque have been built on RDA land behind Pindi Hotel.
Further, rent-a-car vendors occupy shops which were built by the Town Municipal Authority (TMA) apparently on RDA land in front of Larosh Hotel. The TMA also apparently receive rent from these shops.
The rent-a-car businesses also park their cars on the road, blocking the thoroughfare.
There were a number of private offices and schools which were found operating in residential plots.
On Saidpur Road Scheme and Asghar Mall Scheme, multiple houses were found to have been built while encroaching on park land.
In Civil Lines, a lawyer’s hospital was found built on a residential plot.
In Mohanpura, Ansari and Ganjmandi markets, most encroachments were of store owners placing their goods outside the store limits.
In one instance in Mohanpura, a bathroom was built by encroaching on a road. A fully covered arcade built with bricks and steel were found.
Moreover, several officers of the Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) have also been reportedly found to be involved in land grabbing.
RDA chairman Arif Abbasi, who confirmed the findings of the report, said that the audit was conducted by the authority and that it was currently being analysed.
“Those who have encroached upon government land will be sent soft notices,” Abbasi said, adding that those who do not voluntarily vacate the land, will be issued red notices after which the authority will launch a zero-tolerance crackdown to retrieve all encroached government land.
The audit report was completed within 45 and contains the names and phone number of the land grabbers as well as specifying the encroached space.
The 40-page report is expected to be dispatched to Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar. RDA will seek support from police and magistrate during its potential operation.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 20th, 2019.
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