Self accountability: National Press Club lawn inaugurated

The facility was built after levelling a seasonal stream.

ISLAMABAD: The federal capital’s civic agency has “legitimised” the development of a lawn on a land carved out by illegally levelling a seasonal stream. Capital Development Authority (CDA) Chairman Maroof Afzal inaugurated the lawn on Monday, cheered on by dozens of journalists.

The stream used to cross right between the press club building and its parking lot in Sector F-6/1. A few months back, the press club management levelled the stream and later planted saplings on the land.



Encroachment of unusable land across the city in the name of beautification is nothing new for long-time city residents.

There are dozens of streams in the capital, most of which were also natural sources of clean drinking water when the city was founded. However, poor maintenance of the sewage network and the fondness of citizens to use streams as garbage dumps has left the remaining streams dangerously polluted. Most of the streams have simply dried up due to human interference.

Consequently, the city managers started giving permissions to individuals to maintain the banks of such dried streams by carrying out plantation there to support beautification of the city. Under the rules, these areas were supposed to remain open and unfenced as they were still public property.

Most such permissions were given to politicians, bureaucrats, journalists and other influential individuals.

A CDA official claims there are an estimated 500 sites within Islamabad that have been developed into private lawns via the illegal construction of boundary walls across areas acquired under this rule.

National Press Club President Shaharyar Khan said the move is aimed at protecting the environment of the city.

In collaboration with the CDA, NPC would plant 2,500 plants of different species at lawn, he said, adding that prior to being levelled, the stream was serving as breeding place for mosquitoes.

“Large pipes have been laid underneath to keep the flow of the seasonal nullah intact,” Khan said.

At the conclusion of inauguration ceremony, the CDA chairman told the assembly that the CDA was working to maintain its green character.

He said the incumbent management of the authority has revived work on stalled projects across Islamabad and has also launched new initiatives meant to facilitate residents of the capital.

He said the completion of the stalled Kashmir Highway widening project was being fast-tracked in line with this strategy.

He announced early initiation of developmental work on the long-awaited Park Enclave housing project.

He said two new parking plazas would also be constructed in Jinnah Super Market in Sector F-7 to cope with parking issues in Islamabad.

He expressed hope that work on construction of
a signal free Kashmir Highway from Zero Point to Rawat would also be initiated soon.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 28^th, 2014.