CDA officers illegally occupy 1,100 govt houses

IHC seeks details of officers living in Estate Office accommodations

ISLAMABAD:

The Ministry of Housing and Works has told the Islamabad High Court (IHC) that 1,100 officers of the Capital Development Authority (CDA) were illegally living in houses meant for various ministries and divisions under the federal government

The IHC has sought a complete list of CDA officers living in government houses under the supervision of the Estate Office in the federal capital.

IHC judge Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kiyani heard a petition filed by Director General Ministry of Interior Ali Nawaz Malik.

The court was informed by the authorities of the Ministry of Housing and Works that the CDA officers have taken possession of about 1,100 houses built for the employees of various ministries and divisions of the federal government. Apart from this, the court was informed about the houses on the Estate Office pool which were allotted to civil servants working under the federal government as per the general waiting list.

The petitioner's counsel took the plea before the court that the Etate Office had allotted the house to him in November last year and had also issued an eviction order to CDA Deputy Director Engineer Syed Mohammad Hassan who was already residing there.

Advocate Shahid Kamal, the petitioner's counsel further told the court that the house was still in the possession of the CDA officer.

According to him, since CDA is an autonomous body and its employees were not government employees, they cannot be allotted government accommodation from the Estate Office pool.

He requested the court to issue a directive to implement the earlier order against the unauthorized occupants of the house, however, the court adjourned further hearing till February 20, seeking a complete list of the CDA officers living in the houses of the Estate Office.

Of the 17,500 official residences in the federal capital, 5,000 residences have been illegally occupied and encroached upon by employees, who have also constructed additional rooms, boundary walls and courtyards. The Ministry of Housing has decided to conduct an operation against encroachments in government residences.

The Express Tribune has learned that the official residences of the Estate Office under the Federal Ministry of Housing, which are given to federal employees to live in, have been encroached upon on a large scale.

Sources said that additional constructions have been carried out in the courtyards and on roofs by the employees living in these government buildings. Currently, the State Office has about 17,500 government residences in Islamabad. According to the sources, the survey conducted by the State Office showed that there are about 5,000 residences have been either in adverse possession or have been encroached upon.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, January 11^th, 2023.