Islamabad: CDA losing land to mafia in Zone IV, V

[Naveed Yaseen]

* Anti-encroachment operation on cards at Faizabad, Pirwadhai

ISLAMABAD: Capital Development Authority (CDA) is losing its land assets worth billions of rupees to land mafia, to which it seems helpless officially because of lack of manpower and resources.

A couple of years ago, the CDA upgraded its Anti-Encroachment Directorate to Enforcement Directorate giving it additional manpower and equipment to control land grab.

“Presently, we have 443 officials and almost 22 heavy vehicles at our disposal,” said

Enforcement Director Capt ® Faiz Ahmed. He said teams had been constituted to keep strict vigilance on the construction activities on CDA’s land.

Sources said about a dozen housing societies were operating illegally without NOC from the CDA in Zone-IV and V and were fleecing thousands of people, who had invested millions of rupees in pursuit of a dream for a house in the federal capital.

In his detailed presentation, Asadullah Faiz, a former director of Anti-Encroachment Directorate, had informed a meeting that vast tracts of CDA land had been grabbed by land mafia.

He said several housing schemes were operating along Korang Nullah on occupied land cutting into a major portion of the nullah. “A housing scheme has even constructed a bridge over the nullah as it has grabbed land on its both sides,” he said.

The land mafia is selling out CDA land to innocent people impressing them though huge advertisements and attractive broachers.

CDA Chairman Imtiaz Inayat Ellahi has time and again stressed the authorities concerned to focus on generating new income resources instead of selling valuable land.

“We should save our land assets for rainy days as land selling is not a permanent income generation source. We should come up with creative ideas and sign joint ventures with local as well as multinational firms in real estate and housing sectors,” said Ellahi in his maiden meeting with the CDA Board.

According to the director enforcement, the authority has stopped construction activity of 11 housing schemes operating illegally in Zone-IV and V and formed special teams to keep an eye on illegal construction activities.

A senior CDA official said the authority needed huge manpower and latest facilities to check encroachments.

He said the situation worsened when the land grabbers moved to court against CDA’s anti-encroachment drives. He said a mega anti-encroachment drive is on cards to clear Faizabad

and Pirwadhai. In the first phase, the force would remove stalls and unauthorized parking lots and then permanent illegal structures. app

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