Partial compliance: Civic agency restores original by-laws on agro-farms

Officials accept it is difficult to implement SC order on demolition.

ISLAMABAD:

Even after the restoration of the original by-laws related to the development of agricultural farms in line with the Supreme Court’s recent direction, city managers are vague about their enforcement.

The question being debated by officials of the Capital Development Authority (CDA) is whether the constructions on 504 farms were in line with previous by-laws if not whether they will be demolished.

Interestingly, the revised by-laws will be applicable to plots in all schemes. The draft of the revised by-laws is being vetted by the authority’s law directorate.

When CDA Chairman Tahir Shahbaz was asked about the development, he said, “Farmhouse owners will be served notices afresh informing them about the new by-laws. The proposal to demolish the excess covered area will be deliberated at a later stage.”

Shahbaz said the CDA board had approved the new by-laws in line with the Supreme Court directions. “CDA complied with the order and reverted to its original by-laws. “It would be premature to comment on the issue as the draft was with the law directorate,” he said.

“The covered area has been reduced from 12,500 square feet to 4,850 square feet. Out of 4,850 square feet, 2,250 square feet is for construction of the farm manager’s residence, 1,000 square feet for an office block, 1,000 square feet for construction of servant quarters, kitchen, canteen and restroom, 100 square feet for guard room and 500 square feet for a shed for farming equipment,” said a senior official of the Law Directorate.



A senior official of the Estate Wing said according to the terms and conditions mentioned in the lease agreement, the lessee is bound to adhere to the directions and by-laws revised by the CDA from time to time.

“CDA has opened a Pandora’s box. It’s next to impossible to remove excess construction from 504 agriculture farms,” the official said.

On April 19, a bench headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry had directed the city managers to “Undo everything without any ifs and buts.”

In 1994, CDA amended its by-laws pertaining to covered area on farms by enhancing it up to 5,000 square feet. Later, in September 2004 it was revised once again and scaled up to 7,700 square feet to facilitate influential buyers who were purchasing farmland to build palatial houses.

In December 2004, it was extended to 10,000 square feet, with the additional relaxation that violation of up to 2,500 square feet could be regularised after paying a fine of Rs500 per square feet.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 8^th, 2013.