—Five locals accused of firing at CDA officials arrested by police
ISLAMABAD: The Capital Development Authority (CDA), along with the district administration and the police, conducted anti-encroachment operations in Sector E-11 and Korang amidst threats and use of force by the locals.
The locals protested in both areas and said that they had built their homes after getting approval from the authorities. The authorities were threatened by the protesters but despite the threats, they went ahead with the operation and retrieved acres of land, including a graveyard in E-11 spanning over six kanals, dozens of shops, houses and under-construction structures. Five locals accused of firing at district administration, CDA staff were also arrested by the police.
It is worth mentioning here that the old graveyard comprised 22 kanals out of which the locals had occupied the locals had occupied six kanals.
All in all, around 200 personnel of CDA, ICTA and the police took part in the operation.
On the directives of Prime Minister Imran Khan, the new CDA Chairman Afzal Latif ordered across-the-board anti-encroachment operation in various localities of the capital in collaboration with the police and district administration.
The current operation will cover all the nook and crannies of the capital with a special focus on markets, parks, marakiz, I&T centres and the non-commercial properties being used for commercial purposes in all sectors that fall in urban and rural areas of Islamabad.
After the initial drive by CDA, administration and police, along the Kashmir Highway against the illegal constructions and encroachments by the locals and influential businessmen, it seemed that the civic agency was facing hurdles but Wednesday’s operation dispelled that impression.
Previously, State Minister for Interior Shehryar Khan Afridi appraised the media about the grant anti-encroachment operation aimed at the elimination of illegal encroachments and the recovery of government land from the private housing schemes. He said that 33,000 kanals of land had been retrieved from Bahria Enclave and 300 kanals of that was commercial land.
“The total market value of the land near Kuri Road is around Rs300 billion,” he said, adding that the worth of land retrieved from illegal possession near Kashmir Highway is Rs9 billion.
The minister also said that an expensive plot near Centaurus, which was being used for a site office, had also been retrieved and its worth is around Rs10 billion.
