Model jail: Work picks up after CDA assures compensation

The jail will cost around Rs1.2 billion, of which Rs13m already released.

ISLAMABAD:

The Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) administration has sped up the design competition for the city’s first jail after the Capital Development Authority (CDA) assured it would compensate those affected by land acquisition for the project.

A senior official said on Tuesday that the “model jail” project had hit a snag due to delays caused by the CDA’s failure to compensate people from whom the land was acquired. The groundbreaking ceremony of the project had been scheduled for September this year.

“The ICT administration finally succeeded to convince the authority after repeated requests,” he added.

Even though the ICT administration had paid it Rs720million, the top civic body had failed to pay compensations to half of the land owners after it acquired 90 acres of land in Sector H-16.

An official who participated in last week’s meeting to review the progress of work on the jail said five architects have been shortlisted by the four-member team to encourage competition.

According to official documents, the jury members include Islamabad High Court (IHC) Registrar Meeran Jan Kakar, Islamabad Chief Commissioner Jawad Paul and two architects.

Meanwhile, Sikandar Anjum, Zavia Architect, International Design Group, NESPAK, and Dr Alvi & Associates have been shortlisted according to the official, who added that the contract will be given to one of the five competing firms after further evaluation.

During the meeting, the chief commissioner emphasised the need to strictly follow public procurement rules for the competition.

According to the master plan, the jail will cost around Rs1.2 billion, out of which the interior ministry released Rs13 million in August. With a capacity to house almost 40,000 inmates, the facility will also have a 22-bed hospital, schools for the children of the jail staff, a mosque, a library, an auditorium, segregated cells and separate barracks for women and juveniles.

Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail is currently housing 1,500 of Islamabad’s prisoners.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 13^th, 2013.