LAHORE: During the 19th meeting of the caretaker provincial cabinet, an unprecedented step has been taken for the construction of a new residential colony exclusively for senior officials of the Punjab government.
As per the details, the Caretaker Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi has directed the provincial bureaucracy to swiftly initiate the development work for the Government Officers’ Residence (GOR) scheme.
Despite concerns raised by political and legal experts regarding the caretaker administration’s constitutional mandate, the office-bearers assert that this project aims to provide housing facilities to homeless officers of the provincial government.
They emphasize that the scheme will significantly improve the living standards of Punjab government officials and contribute to their overall well-being.
Given the relatively short term of the caretaker government, Chief Minister Naqvi stressed the urgency for prompt action by the provincial bureaucracy to ensure the timely completion of the project.
However, legal and constitutional expert Muhammad Azhar Siddique pointed out that according to the Constitution, the caretaker administration has a limited mandate of managing day-to-day government affairs until the newly elected government takes charge.
As such, approving new housing schemes or initiating development projects are deemed to be beyond the caretaker government’s mandate.
Presently, Lahore already accommodates six GORs dedicated to provincial government officers, in addition to residential colonies and flats for lower-ranking officials.
In the same meeting, the caretaker cabinet also gave the green light to include the Lahore Ring Road Southern Loop-3 (SL-3) and the Niazi Chowk to Babu Sabu elevated road projects in the Annual Development Programme (ADP).
Source: Tribune
