Agro-farm violations: Senators stunned by CDA’s reply

Supreme Court first ordered action against violators and then granted stay order to owners, say civic agency officials

ISLAMABAD: The civic authorities have informed a Senate panel that they have been restrained by the Supreme Court from demolishing the construction on covered area beyond permissible limits at about 201 agricultural farms in violation of lease agreements.

A written reply submitted to the Senate Standing Committee on Cabinet Secretariat by the Capital Development Authority (CDA) officials stunned many of the senators.

The committee met at the parliament House on Wednesday to discuss issues related to the violations of lease agreements of agricultural farms, pending internal inquiries of the CDA, and development at Sector I-14. Chairperson of the committee, Senator Kalsoom Perveen, chaired the meeting.

In early 2013 the apex court had ordered the CDA to take action against the influential persons for non-conforming use of land meant for growing vegetables and fruits.

“It’s astonishing to hear that at first the apex court ordered action against the violators and then it granted stay order to the owners of agro farms against its own decision,” Senator Nawabzada Saifullah Magsi, one of the committee members, commented.

The CDA officials informed the committee that according to a door-to-door survey of 343 agro farms carried out following directions of the Supreme Court, it transpired that construction at 142 agro farms is within the permissible limits, that is 4,850 square feet of total area of the farm while owners of 201 agricultural farms have built houses beyond the permissible limits.

The authority’s board following SC orders rationalised the building byelaws for the farms in April 2013 by reducing earlier allowed covered area to 4,850 square feet, the statement says.

Following the survey, the civic agency said, notices were served on the violators to demolish constructions on excess covered area but the SC ordered to maintain status quo in the issue.

“Agricultural farms were originally meant to grow meet vegetable and poultry needs of the city, but unfortunately, they have been turned into private clubs to hold parties,” deplored Senator Perveen.

The CDA member Planning and Design said the court had granted stay order to the owners though the CDA was pursuing these orders in court.

Senator Yousuf Badini questioned that the Supreme Court took suo motu notice over the issue, how come it granted stay order to the violators.

Pending inquiries

The CDA officials informed the committee that of the total 157 inquiries, 71 related to financial embezzlement and 86 of administrative lapses. These are pending with the authority, including a number of inquiries initiated on the recommendation of a judicial commission formed on the order of the Islamabad High Court to probe the issues related to the CDA. In most of the cases initiated in 2003, the CDA has yet to nominate inquiry officers.

The most important inquiries are of Diplomatic Shuttle Bus Service, irregularities in construction of Supreme Court Phase-II, substandard furniture at Parliament Lodges, fake tenders and award of work, embezzlement in Bari Imam Shrine construction, allotment of plots to the CDA officers, double allotment and false planning of sector I-14, which affected 2,000 allottees of plots.

The committee members expressed dissatisfaction over the report describing it incomplete and directed the CDA to submit a report afresh over the issue. Senator Sughra Imam said the officers who were accused of irregularities had been given promotions in the past instead of taking action against them.

Perveen also questioned ‘look after’ charge of the post of the CDA Member Environment given to the senior most officer of the CDA, Mustafain Kazmi, besides his qualification for the post. However, the civic agency officials said that the CDA board members’ positions were not technical but managerial ones and the federal government had the authority to appoint any officer against them.

List of constructions made beyond permissible limits

Name of Scheme	Covered area up to 4,850 Sft.	Covered area up to 12,500 Sft.	Covered area beyond 12,500 Sft.
Orchard Scheme, Murree Road	12	29	4
Orchard Scheme, sector H-9	1	5	3
P&V Scheme No. IV, Murree Road	2	13	3
P&V Scheme No. III, Kahuta Road	36	16	2
P&V Scheme No. II, Park Road, Chak Shahzad	42	61	6
P&V Scheme No. II, Sehana Extension	23	30	-
P&V Scheme No. I, Tarlai Kalan	16	28	1
Total	142	182	19

Published in The Express Tribune, November 20^th, 2014.