Lack of coordination: Authorities fail to evict I-11 cattle market

IHC had earlier directed eviction of the illegal cattle market

ISLAMABAD:

Authorities on Monday failed to take action against the illegal cattle market in Sector  I-11.

Lack of coordination between the city administration and the civic agency, despite several meetings over the issue, has resulted in the continuous failure of authorities to evict the illegal cattle market.

With a couple of days left for Eidul Azha, hundreds of buyers and traders made deals at the illegal market in the presence of nearly 2,500 staffers of the enforcement wing of the Capital Development Authority (CDA) and a contingent of the police. Both sides showed restraint to take any action on Monday.

On Sunday, it was decided following a meeting at the CDA headquarters that a full-scale operation would be launched on Monday against the illegal sale and purchase of sacrificial animals at the market.

Some 2,500 staffers of the CDA’s enforcement wing reached the site at around 9am, however, the magisterial cover the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) Administration was supposed to provide to the whole operation was missing.

After a lapse of three hours, a magistrate of the ICT Administration reached the venue but the police force necessary to conduct the operation was not present.

The police contingent then arrived at around 2pm.

However, the media found the police personnel standing at one corner of the illegal market, in front of the Nescom Hospital, while CDA staffers at the other end, in front of the Metro store.

Meanwhile, traders staged a protest by setting the garbage they had collected from the area on fire.

In the presence of the police and CDA officials, the animals traders continued to off-load animals from trucks without any objection.

Late night development

Seeing the failure of CDA and the ICT Administration, city high-ups decided to hold another ‘important’ meeting — this time at the office of the Islamabad chief commissioner.

The meeting was attended by the chief commissioner, IGP, and the CDA.

“Fresh police force has reached the spot as well as CDA staffers,” the director of CDA’s Directorate of Municipal Administration (DMA) Capt (retired) Shahbaz Tahir, who attended the meeting, said.

He shared that all ways leading to the illegal market had been cordoned off, and a number of trucks carrying animals have been barred from entering.

“Within an hour or two the illegal market would be shifted,” Tahir claimed when contacted at around 9pm on Monday.

When asked about the ICT Administration and the police’s apparent lack of response on Monday morning, he said both departments had compensated by sending a fresh force and ensuring an operation on Monday night.

Animal traders

A senior official of DMA said currently there were over 30,000 sacrificial animals present at the illegal market.

The animal traders, on the other hand, claimed they paid hefty amounts in bribes to CDA officials and the police to establish their camps at the illegal market.

“Now they want us to pay additional amounts to the contractor to establish new camps at the designated site in I-12…this is unjust and unacceptable,” said Attaullah, an animal trader from Mianwali.

He claimed he paid nearly Rs13,000 in bribes in total.

The Islamabad High Court had earlier directed CDA to evict the illegal cattle market from I-11 by all means and shift it to the designated market site at Sector I-12.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 22^nd, 2015.