The Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) has ordered illegal housing schemes to stop marketing without acquiring the No-Objection Certificates (NOCs) before any legal action is taken against them.
The RDA has issued notices to 12 illegal housing societies in Rawalpindi, while they advised the citizens to ascertain their status from the RDA’s official website before making any investment.
The business of illegal housing schemes has boomed in the past few years due to the lack of implementation of the law. Approximately 264 of them are functioning illegally in the RDA’s jurisdiction, but RDA has previously failed to carry out any legal action against them.
The RDA’s spokesman detailed that the authority has registered First Information Reports (FIRs) against seven illegal housing schemes and has instructed them to stop their illegal marketing as they have not been issued any NOCs by the authority.
He further revealed that the action is being taken against them, and the authority has issued notices to the sponsors of the Countryside Farms at Chak Beli Khan Road, Prism Town, and New Metro City in Gujar Khan, Islamabad Golf City, Pearl Enclave, and Capital Valley in Mouza Thallian, along with Al-Madina Valley at Girja Road.
According to reports, these schemes have sprung up right under the nose of the RDA, which has failed to enforce the law that stipulates three years in prison and a fine of Rs. 0.5 million for unlicensed and unlawful housing schemes. Oddly, the RDA only sends them notices when they become fully operational with electricity and gas connections, which they reportedly acquire after bribing the officials of these service providers.
The spokesman mentioned that the Metropolitan Planning & Traffic Engineering (MP&TE) has sent letters to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) seeking action against their unlawful advertising on social media, adding that the district collector, the district council, and the PEMRA have been notified in this regard.
The authority has also written to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), the FIA Islamabad, Overseas Pakistanis Foundation (OPF) Islamabad, the Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Ltd (SNGPL) Islamabad, the Commissioner Islamabad, and the above-mentioned stakeholders asking them to freeze bank accounts and block social media accounts of owners and administrations of the illegal housing schemes.
Furthermore, the spokesman maintained that the RDA has asked the Islamabad Electric Supply Company (IESCO), the SNGPL, and Pakistan Telecommunication Limited (PTCL) to not provide their services to the mentioned housing schemes.
Meanwhile, a plan to initiate a grand operation against them has been made, while the Government of Punjab has banned issuing any NOCs to all new housing schemes in order to protect and preserve the agrarian land.
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