Daily Times

Chairman Capital Development Authority (CDA) Muhammad Ali Randhawa on Thursday said that the construction work on the Islamabad Expressway, signal-free project would be completed and inaugurated by August 14 next month.

Following the directives of Federal Minister for Interior Syed Mohsin Naqvi, Chairman CDA has been assigned to personally oversee the development projects in the Federal Capital.

Chairman CDA conducted a comprehensive visit to the Islamabad Expressway while reviewing the ongoing construction at key locations including Sawan bridge, Japan underpass, Railway bridge and Bhinder bridge.

Muhammad Ali said that under the directives of the Minister for Interior, the construction work on the long-stalled project has advanced at an unprecedented speed by the authority.

The concerned officials informed the CDA chief that, for the first time, construction work is being conducted around the clock to meet the deadline.

They said that significant progress has been made on the complex and challenging bridges and structures of the project over the past two months.

Muhammad Ali appreciated the efforts of the CDA, contractors and consultants for their dedication in accelerating the project towards completion.

“Maintaining such a rapid pace of work on the project, despite the constant 24-hour traffic on the Islamabad Expressway is commendable,” he said.

Muhammad Ali assured that there would be no compromise on the high quality of construction work on the project.

Bus Terminal

Chairman Capital Development Authority (CDA) Muhammad Ali Randhawa on Thursday said that the authority is planning to establish state-of-the-art Bus Terminal in the federal capital.

He said this while chairing a meeting here to discuss the establishment of a state-of-the-art bus terminal in Islamabad which was attended by senior officials from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the CDA.

Muhammad Ali directed that a study be conducted to identify three to four potential sites for the new terminal which should be well-connected to all parts of the city.

He urged CDA and ADB teams to work together to explore various proposals. The meeting also resulted in the decision to develop an Urban Transport Master Plan for Islamabad.

Muhammad Ali said the finalized proposals would be presented to the designated forum for approval.

Buildings Sealed

The Capital Development Authority (CDA) has sealed 60 buildings in the federal capital during a crackdown against the violations of the bylaws of the authority.

During the crackdown against unauthorized constructions, the Building Control Wing, alongside the Enforcement Directorate, sealed 38 buildings in G-9/4 due to non-conforming use, said a press release.

In Gulberg Residencia, 22 under-construction buildings were sealed for proceeding without the necessary permissions.

The authority has issued notices to the owners of the sealed properties. Prior to this action, the owners were directed to obtain the required permissions from the CDA before beginning construction.

The buildings were sealed because the owners failed to comply with these instructions.

Chairman CDA Muhammad Ali Randhawa reiterated the authority’s commitment to enforcing building bylaws throughout Islamabad, stating that the crackdown on violations will continue consistently.

New Airport Town

Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA), on the directives of Director General, Kinza Murtaza, has rejected the approval request of the layout plan of an illegal housing scheme, “New Airport Town”.

According to a RDA spokesman, “New Airport Town” is an unapproved scheme as the RDA has rejected and returned the file submitted by the scheme’s owner, Shahid Mehmood.

The RDA’s Metropolitan Planning and Traffic Engineering (MP&TE) Directorate has advised the citizens not to invest in an unauthorized scheme located in Mouza Katarian, Tehsil and District Rawalpindi.

The RDA spokesperson further informed that the DG Kinza Murtaza has warned that strict action in accordance with the law would be taken against the rules violators.

The developers of “New Airport Town” are illegally advertising and selling plots without RDA approval, violating Rule 46(1) of the Punjab Development Authorities Private Housing Scheme Rules-2021.

The MP&TE Directorate of the RDA has instructed the scheme’s owner to stop all development activities, advertisements, sale and purchase of the plots immediately.

Additionally, the DG Kinza Murtaza has directed the MP&TE Directorate to take immediate and strict action against illegal advertisements and marketing of unauthorized housing schemes, he added.