Rawalpindi delimitation finalised

Garrison city divided into two municipal towns, with two mayors, four deputy mayors

RAWALPINDI:

The final notification for the new local government delimitation in Rawalpindi district has been issued after all objections were rejected.

The three-member Delimitation Authority, comprising District Election Commissioner-I Sajid Rathore, District Election Commissioner-II Safia Akbar and Local Government Director Shazia Mumtaz, signed and issued the final list for the upcoming local government elections.

Under the new delimitation, Rawalpindi city has been divided into two municipal towns - Municipal Rawal Town and Municipal Potohar Town - resulting in two mayors and four deputy mayors for the city.

Rawal Town will have 41 union councils, down from 46, while Potohar Town will have 33, down from 36. Murree Road has been used as the dividing line: the Raja Bazaar side will fall under Rawal Town, while the Dhoke Khabba and Sadiqabad side will come under Potohar Town.

The Rawalpindi District Council has been dissolved and its areas divided among six tehsil councils. Overall, Rawalpindi district will now have 17 local government bodies, including two municipal towns, five municipal committees, six tehsil councils and four cantonment boards.

Two new tehsil councils and one new municipal committee have been created. Rawalpindi city has effectively been divided into four local government areas - two municipal towns and two tehsil councils.

The newly created Tehsil Council Saddar will comprise 22 union councils, while Tehsil Council Cantt will have 29 union councils.

Across Rawalpindi city, the total number of union councils has increased from 82 to 125, while the two municipal towns have seen a combined reduction of eight union councils.

The five municipal committees in the district include Gujar Khan with six union councils, Taxila with five, Kahuta and Kallar Syedan with four each, and the newly created Daultala Municipal Committee with two union councils.

The six tehsil councils formed after the dissolution of the district council comprise Gujar Khan with 36 union councils, Kahuta with 12, Kallar Syedan with 13, Taxila with 13, Saddar with 22 and Cantt with 29.

Rawalpindi district previously had five cantonment boards. Following the creation of Murree as a separate district, the number has fallen to four - Rawalpindi, Chaklala, Wah and Taxila cantonment boards.

All objections filed against the new delimitation have been rejected, paving the way for the upcoming local government elections.