ISLAMABAD: The stringent steps taken by the Building Control Section have started to produce results as administrations of 54 of the approved housing societies have submitted affidavits to the Capital Development Authority (CDA) to get residential and commercial construction approved by the civic agency.
It is estimated that the step will not only generate revenue worth two billion rupees for the agency but will also help regulate the construction and infrastructure. According to documents, the CDA chairman has formed an eight-member committee and tasked it with revising CDA Building Regulation 1963 & 2005, ICT Land Disposal Regulations to Rules and the Zoning Regulations to rules and propose regulations.
The decision to regulate these societies will also curb the China cutting that is rampant across many societies and sectors. The practice of the China cutting means resizing and cutting up plots designated for providing amenities to the public at large into residential and commercial plots, changing the title of land in order to mint money. This practice is not only limited to areas near Rawal Dam, as sectors G-13 and E-11 are also victim of the China cutting.
Since sector G-13 and E-11 are not coming under CDA’s jurisdiction, the land grabbers and encroachers had their heyday. By taking advantage of lack of regulation and building control, many parks and playgrounds in these sectors and the societies have been converted into residential or commercial plots. The multiple societies, including the National Police Foundation, MPCHS, FECHS and the Pakistan Medical Cooperative Housing Society, have its own infrastructure maintenance system in place.
Till to date, a probe into the matter of the land swap in E-11 from year 2009 to 2013 fearing massive violations and bringing to the fore the beneficiaries of these transactions remains in a cold storage. A former state minister and the former Public Accounts Committee chairman took multiple notices about the infamous practice that too bore little to no fruit.
Due to the China cutting, areas of the capital suffer from housing shortage, lack of infrastructure, traffic congestion, rampant land speculation, improper accessibility, uneven skyline, mixed land uses, and haphazard growth of multi-storey buildings.