ISLAMABAD: The Capital Development Authority (CDA) Board in Islamabad has made a landmark decision that is bound to please visitors to public parks.
The board has announced an end to the culture of charging entry fees to two major parks – Lake View Park and Japanese Park – which previously charged visitors for entry.
The CDA Board meeting, chaired by CDA Chairman Noorul Amin Mengal, also resolved that there should be free entry for the public in all parks throughout Islamabad, a move that has been widely welcomed by the public.
The Chairman made it clear that the new rules would be implemented with immediate effect. Any official or contractor who attempts to charge visitors for entry fee in any park after Wednesday would be violating the new policy and can be reported to him for immediate action.
Creation of a ‘Vigilance Unit’
In addition to this, the Board also approved the creation of a Vigilance Unit (VU), to be headed by an Intelligence Bureau (IB) officer or a serving army official.
This unit will be responsible for monitoring the conduct and performance of CDA employees and will have access to records of all CDA officers available in the Human Resource Department.
Additionally, the unit will have a director general, a director, two deputy directors, one assistant director, and one admin officer, and will report directly to the CDA Chairman.
The proposed unit will be able to investigate allegations against any official and detect corrupt practices, with the ability to report non-compliance with rules.
It is expected to operate independently and transparently in carrying out its duties.
It is important to mention that other decisions taken by the Board include the approval of bids from previous auctions that had faced controversy and a future auction of commercial plots exclusively for overseas Pakistanis.
Furthermore, the board also approved the construction of underpasses, parking plazas, and the expansion of Garden Avenue from 7th Avenue to Murree Road.
