Six years and counting: Sector I-15 awaits development

[Lahore_Real_Estate]

ISLAMABAD - Though the Capital Development Authority (CDA) has started the development work on the recently-launched Park Enclave housing project to earn Rs 10 billion, it is yet to hire a contractor to undertake development in Sector I-15, for which people paid millions to the authority several years ago.
“The authority had launched Sector I-15 in 2005 for provision of housing facility to low income groups, but the dream of low income-earning people to have a house in the federal capital has gone down the drain, as the authorities are yet to hire a contractor for developing the sector. The finance wing of the civic body has already spent most of the revenue generated from selling plots in Sector I-15 over the development of other projects, therefore, they are unable to start the much-awaited development of Sector I-15,” an official source said.
He said that after launching the residential sector in year 2005, the CDA pledged to develop 5,560 plots and 8,000 flats in the sector and earned Rs 150 million from the sale of more or less 300,000 brochures.
The official said the CDA had fixed 54 percent quota in Sector I-15 for the general public, 20 percent for the affected people of Islamabad, 10 percent for non commissioned officers of the Pakistan Army, 10 percent for the employees of the federal government from BPS-1 to BPS-15, five percent for CDA employees and one percent for journalists working in the twin cities.
The official said Sector I-15 had been launched to resolve the housing problems of low income groups who had a maximum annual income of Rs 150,000.
The sector has a total of 13,500 housing units on 5,500 plots of five to seven marlas and 8,000 flats.
He pointed out that this inordinate delay in the development of new sectors would further aggravate the housing shortage in the capital city, as Islamabad was currently facing a shortage of 40,000 units that had badly inflated real estate prices in the city.
CDA Public Relation Deputy Director Ramzan Sajid said the authority would soon hire a contractor for developing Sector I-15.
He said the CDA was engaged in negotiation with a Chinese state-owned firm for developing the residential sector and the contract agreement was likely to be signed soon.
Sajid said three companies took part in the pre-qualification process, but the Chinese firm came out successful as the other two did not offer a bid.