Govt green lights hiring of consultant

Next consultative meeting on the federal capital’s master plan to be held next week

ISLAMABAD: The federal interior ministry on Friday gave its nod to a federal commission, working on revising the master plan of the federal capital, to proceed with hiring a consultant for the project.

While approving the request for proposals (RFPs), the federal commission has been directed to ensure that all rules of the observance of the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) and other relevant rules and regulations.

This was disclosed during a meeting of the federal commission which met at the Capital Development Authority (CDA) headquarters on Friday. The meeting was attended by the members of the federal commission. The commission reviewed the progress made so far on revising the plan.

While discussing the RFPs, the commission directed to forward the draft RFPs to the PPRA for vetting.

The procurement director and contract of the authority were tasked to examine the RFPs in line with CDA rules.

The meeting also reviewed the outcome of the consultative dialogue held on May 2.

The meeting was told that another round of consultative dialogue has been scheduled for May 16, at 11 am, at the Pakistan-China Friendship Centre.

During this dialogue, different private associations, developers, International organisations, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), and representatives of civil society are being invited to attend.

The progress so far made regarding revision of the master plan will be placed before participants of the dialogues so that their input and suggestions can be included in the revised master plan.

Accordingly, a questionnaire in this regard will also be floated amongst participants to seek their input and any suggestions or opinions that they may have about the project.

The federal government had at the turn of the year decided to set up a 12-member federal commission headed by the city’s chief commissioner to review and revise the Master Plan of the city and to grant it a new direction for the next 20 years. The commission has also been tasked with presenting recommendations for regularising all illegal structures built in the Islamabad Capital Territory.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 11^th, 2019.