Post Reply 
 
Thread Rating:
  • 0 Vote(s) - 0 Average
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
Lahore: LDA canal road commercialisation move comes under fire
07-18-2009, 05:57 AM
Post: #1
Lahore: LDA canal road commercialisation move comes under fire
Lahore Bachao Tehrik has flayed a move of Lahore Development Authority (LDA) to commercialise 58 more streets and roads in the provincial capital.

Kamil Khan Mumtaz, Imrana Tawana, Rafay Alam and Iram Aftab in a press conference held here on Friday at Lahore Press Club said the Tehrik was not against the development or commercialization but it believed that LDA’s action was illegal, irresponsible, destructive and harmful to the environment, economy and welfare of the city, and should be stopped forthwith.

They said LDA has no authority to term streets “commercial”. They said land-use zoning, building heights, set-backs, floor area and the other building regulations and rules, street widths, nature of traffic and parking provisions etc were highly technical matters of urban planning, traffic engineering and should be managed on the basis of physical and socio-economic surveys, data analysis and projections for populations, growth dynamics, infrastructure capacities etc. They said these matters should not be subject to arbitrary and ad-hoc decisions based on subjective opinion polls.

Designating certain streets as “commercial” in the LDA lexicon means changing the building regulations governing the properties abutting those streets, permitting greater building heights, larger floor area ratios, more car parking provisions, they said.

The result will be replacement of planned development with urban chaos, which will lead to unsustainable loads on urban infrastructure including electricity, water supply, sewerage, and increased motor traffic, increased noise and air pollution, they maintained. The only beneficiary of this ad-hoc “commercialization” will be the LDA, which will collect commercialization fees. Besides, the speculative property developers will also earn profit from the “investment opportunities”, they added.

The LDA commissioned a series of master plans, urban development and traffic studies and master plan up-dates, all of which included clear policies and plans for the development of commercial land-use areas and zones in both urban renewal and urban expansion areas.

The location and nature of commercial development should be according to these policies and plans and not according to arbitrary and ad-hoc decisions based on subjective opinion polls; The policies and plans should indeed be constantly monitored and reviewed by relevant experts and public interest groups whose “considered recommendations” should be taken into account while reviewing policies and plans in the light of changing circumstances.

The proposed “commercialization” will have impacts on traffic, waste management, existing and future public transport systems and the provision of other utilities and cannot be undertaken, by law, without an environment impact assessment, they added.

With respect to recent news reports regarding the chief minister’s direction to reconsider the widening of the Canal bank Road, the Lahore Bachao Tehrik reiterated its firm stance that the Lahore Canal was one of the world’s great recreational avenues and should be declared a “no-go” zone with respect to commercialization. The Tehrik further pointed out that under the law no such road widening project could proceed without an environment impact assessment and a public hearing.

http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=188567
Quote this message in a reply
Post Reply 


Possibly Related Threads...
Thread: Author Replies: Views: Last Post
  Faisalabad: Demolition of Illegal Commercial Market on Canal Expressway LRE-Azan 0 1,100 03-02-2022 06:50 PM
Last Post: LRE-Azan
  Allottees move SC over housing schemes in F-14, F-15 of Islamabad LRE-Azan 0 1,277 02-24-2022 08:21 PM
Last Post: LRE-Azan
  LWMC has Launched an Operation to make Mall Road a Model road of the City LRE-Azan 0 4,137 08-09-2018 06:35 PM
Last Post: LRE-Azan
  Commercialisation: LDA to assume control of buildings on 147 roads Salman 0 4,667 03-20-2014 02:54 PM
Last Post: Salman
  Lahore Ring Road Update : Southern Loop of Ring Road to be re-assessed Salman 0 9,476 01-10-2014 12:48 PM
Last Post: Salman
  Khaira Distributory Road that links Package 17 of Ring Road to Ferozepur Road Salman 0 10,066 11-30-2013 12:48 PM
Last Post: Salman
  Metro Bus to move into Islamabad and Peshawar Salman 0 6,942 10-26-2013 06:20 PM
Last Post: Salman
  High-rises at high fire risk Salman 0 5,579 10-23-2013 04:51 PM
Last Post: Salman
  Road From LOS To Multan Road, Construction Work On The Go Salman 0 12,465 09-23-2013 03:18 PM
Last Post: Salman
  Owners To Ensure Fire Safety Measures In High-Rise Buildings In Lahore Salman 0 5,227 06-08-2013 06:18 PM
Last Post: Salman
  Punjab govt to give relief for building plan, commercialisation Salman 0 4,920 05-20-2013 12:19 PM
Last Post: Salman
  Commercialisation fees: DCO seen as going soft on traders ahead of elections Salman 0 3,807 01-29-2013 04:04 PM
Last Post: Salman
  LDA collected Rs 2.34b commercialisation fee in 2012 Salman 0 4,302 01-04-2013 12:19 PM
Last Post: Salman
  LDA collects over Rs 2 billion commercialisation fee Salman 0 3,350 12-31-2012 12:39 PM
Last Post: Salman
  LDA commercialisation date Salman 0 3,273 12-27-2012 12:37 PM
Last Post: Salman
  Uprising’ against canal road widening Salman 0 3,775 12-17-2012 11:49 AM
Last Post: Salman
  Lahore Ring Road News : Work on southern loop of Ring Road to start soon Salman 0 7,919 11-05-2012 12:05 PM
Last Post: Salman
  LDA not authorised to levy commercialisation fee Salman 0 9,964 11-02-2012 04:33 PM
Last Post: Salman
  SC stops work on Canal Road widening project Salman 0 4,691 10-03-2012 05:51 PM
Last Post: Salman
  Kachhi Canal: A project that could revolutionize Balochistan Salman 0 3,934 08-03-2012 12:43 PM
Last Post: Salman

Forum Jump:


User(s) browsing this thread: 1 Guest(s)