Rawalpindi Cant. Board increases building plan fees

[Naveed Yaseen]

Saeed Ahmed
Rawalpindi
The Rawalpindi Cantonment Board (RCB) has made a sharp increase in building plan fees for initiating development work in all localities falling in its jurisdiction. The new fee will be effective from October 1, 2009.

Talking to ‘The News’ here on Tuesday, RCB Senior Engineer Abdul Rahim said that the decision to this effect was taken in the best interest of cantonment residents. He said that the decision was taken in a board meeting held with the station commander in the chair and attended by RCB chief executive officer.

According to the decision, the domestic owners will now have to pay around Rs500 per square yard and commercial owners Rs1,000 per square yard for building plans. Previously these charges were Rs80 per square yard for domestic structures and Rs200 per square yard for commercial buildings.

The RCB senior engineer said that the amount collected from building plan fees would be utilised for providing basic facilities to residents.

On the other hand, property owners in the jurisdiction of the RCB have expressed deep concern over the sudden increase in building plan fees.

In a meeting held at Khidmat Markaz, Islahi Committee President (Saham Area) Azhar Mahmood Chishti, Anjuman-e-Shehrian Rawalpindi Cantonment Malik Abdus Samad Hussain, Anjuman Islah-e-Moashara Misrial President Chaudhry Mohammad Shabbir, Welfare Committee Choor President Malik Mohammad Fayaz, PML-N General Secretary Malik Fazlur Rahman and former vice president of RCB Hafiz Hussain Ahmed condemned the increase in building plan fees by the RCB.

After the meeting, the participants forwarded copies of a letter to Federal Minister for Defence Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar, the defence secretary, the Military Lands and Cantonments director general and the RCB president and executive officer, asking them to withdraw the decision. They said people were already burdened by price hike and this new increase in building plan fees multiply their miseries.

http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=203178