A private housing association has been accused of illegally constructing on the Soan River land.
Citing official documents from the Capital Development Authority (CDA), Dawn stated in a report that a major housing company has constructed high-rise commercial buildings illegally in the said space. The report does not name the association.
According to the authorized layout plan, the area where the plazas were being built was designated for a park and was the Soan River’s right-of-way.
Citing its own sources, the report added that the Planning Wing recently penned a letter requesting action to halt unapproved building construction out of concern for urban flooding, “, especially in the context of flooding in E-11 in 2021 and floods in tourist sites Bahrain and Kalam last year.”
In compliance with the Islamabad High Court (IHC) directive, a team of CDA visited the society earlier this month and pointed out twenty constructed commercial buildings and approximately five commercial buildings under construction on the land.
These projects are in violation of the layout plan of the said society approved by CDA in 2010. Additionally, the aforementioned society has been served with a notice.
Despite the fact that the letters were issued on January 5 and no action was taken, there are reports that the CDA has been under pressure not to take action against the aforementioned society. The report adds that indirect action may be taken against officials who pointed out the violations, a source alleged.
Syed Asif Raza, a spokesman for the CDA, told the scribe that notices have been served and the civic authority has given notices to a number of societies, including the one in question.
Raza dismissed the reports of officials being used as scapegoats, stating:
There is no truth in such reports. Those who are doing the right job are our assets. Secondly, we treat all societies equally; all violators are violators.
