LAHORE – The anti-encroachments drive, launched to remove all stuff blocking “Right of the Way”, is adamant to take any action against illegal heaps of building materials lying unattended at various roads despite that fact that only four days are left until the operations ends, Pakistan Today has learnt. Since the thunderous start of the drive, City District Government Lahore (CDGL) officials have not padded up against squatters encroaching roadside areas including main roads with cement, sand, bricks, iron rods and construction machinery. The affected roads and areas include Egerton Road near LDA Plaza, Ravi Road, Multan Road, Allama Iqbal Road, Dharampura, Faisal Town, Township, Baghbanpura and Gulberg.
A senior town official told Pakistan Today that action could not be taken against illegal building material on roads because CDGL big wigs did not bother to make the menace part of the anti-encroachment campaign. “The visionless drive is destructive only against illegal shades, extension of shops, stairs and signboards but friendly to encroachers who piled up building construction material on half stretch of roads without covering them with any sheet that have shrunk the right of way, disrupted smooth flow of traffic and caused environmental issues,” he added.
Samanabad Town Administrator Zulfiqar Ghuman said that the anti-encroachment drive had nothing to do with roadside building stuff. “The drive will not take action against them. It is the issue of the town administration that will bring to book the violators.” he maintained. Ravi Town Administrator Usman Ghani said that it was such a type of encroachment in which squatters placed the building material for the time being and lifted them on a daily basis. He said that building material on roads was also a form of encroachment and the CDGL was in action to check the violation.
Wahga Town Administrator Munir Ahmed said that illegal building material on roads were not encroachments but it was something else treated with different rules and regulations. “Before 2009, there was malba fee imposed on placing building material out of the premises of the plot. Malba fee varied depending upon residential and commercial plots,” he added. “In September 2009, Punjab CM Shahbaz Sharif suspended the malba fee to facilitate the people. Later, former Lahore DCO Sajjad Ahmed Bhutta allowed in July 2010 to issue fine chits to encroachers of building stuffs again after receiving a large number of complaints,” Ahmed maintained.
He said that since then TMAs had been issuing a fine chit of Rs 1,000 to violators with giving seven days time to lift the stuff. Those people who did not deposit the penalty, legal action was taken against them, the Wahga Town administrator added. Another official in the Lahore DCO office said that CDGL received a large number of reports that roads were fast becoming dumping places for building construction material due to which road passage had been squeezed causing a great difficulty to vehicular traffic to pass through. The report said that contractors had also encroached upon footpaths by getting construction material uploaded there leaving no option for pedestrians but to walk on roads at the risk of their lives even during rush hours.
Lahore DCO Ahad Cheema said that there was a complete ban on throwing construction material on roads. Those people who were found involved in throwing such material on roads had to face heavy penalty, he added. Cheema said he had issued orders to launch a drive against those people involved in dumping construction material on roads. He said that all administrators and town municipal officers (TMO) had been issued directives in this regard. Dilawar Shah, a resident of Gulberg, said that another issue of adjoining streets of the area was dust that came from the construction material littered at various spots on the road. Replying to another question, he said that people encroached upon roads by placing building material under the garb of “Malba Fee” which was charged per marla depending upon the locality.
