ISLAMABAD: The Capital Development Authority (CDA) invited owners of approved housing schemes at Jinnah Convention Centre on Thursday to listen to their grievances before formally extending its building bylaws. Earlier, it was decided to enforce its building bylaws across the city to control haphazard development. The management decided to move forward in phases and as a first step, it had decided to regulate approved housing societies. CDA through a number of advertisements in national dailies had asked people to approach the civic body for the approval of their building plans, which resulted in confusion and propaganda because the private housing schemes were already approving building plans on their own. To avoid any misconception in this regard, CDA arranged a meeting with the owners of private housing societies operating in the limits of the Islamabad Capital Territory. CDA conveyed to societies that the authority is not going to do anything new but to enforce its rules in the light of decisions passed by courts and the federal cabinet. The owners were urged to implement authority’s standard operating procedures (SOPs). CDA Director Building Control-II Shafi Marwat informed private housing societies about new SOPs and the future plan to regularise societies. The CDA official also sought suggestions from the society representatives. A majority of participants complained against Housing Societies Directorate CDA particularly for inordinate delay in approval of maps and layout plans. All the directors of planning wing were present on the occasion, however Director Housing Societies Faraz Malik was absent. Marwat spelt out that approval of building maps was the mandate of the authority while housing societies were giving approvals of maps by their own which was the violation of CDA regulations due to which general public as well as CDA was suffering a lot. “The purpose of activating building control directorate is to facilitate private housing societies in bid to provide relief to general public and prevent CDA and private housing societies from future troubles,” Marwat told the housing societies, adding that CDA was inviting them to approach the authority for getting approval of maps. The representatives of the societies said that they were facilitating people whereas they are portrayed as land mafia which was a wrong impression. They said if anyone violated CDA byelaws he must be penalised. They also demanded for lifting of ban on utility connections in private housing societies. To this, Marwat clarified that the ban was imposed by the federal cabinet in 2004. Previously, due to lax enforcement of CDA’s building regulations, a mushroom growth of illegal housing societies was witnessed in the capital. Intriguingly, the CDA had formed a separate department, Building Control-II (BC-II), to enforce building regulations outside CDA schemes and sectors. The said directorate was not working properly since its birth but the task to revive the directorate was given to Marwat, who had already successfully conducted operation against non-confirming use in past and cleared most of the residential areas from commercial use. “The Building Control-II is currently working without required staff and facilities. If the higher ups of the authority are interested to take results then they will have to overcome these shortcomings,” an officer commented. Published in Daily Times, September 15th 2017.