Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: The Capital Development Authority (CDA) officials came under fire during a Senate hearing on Tuesday for not taking a tougher stance over violation of building by-laws.

The Senate’s Standing Committee on Cabinet Secretariat met under its chairman, Senator Talha Mehmood. Islamabad Mayor Shaikh Ansar Aziz was also present.

The committee discussed the violations of CDA building by-laws by private developers, mainly the Centaurus Mall, the Grand Hyatt Hotel and Safa Gold Mall.

CDA Building Control Section (BCS) Director Shafi Marwat briefed the committee about violations committed by the Centaurus Mall and Grand Hyatt Hotel. He said that the owner of the Centaurus Mall had not taken a completion certificate before occupying the building.

“How can anybody be allowed to occupy a building without having a completion certificate? The CDA has allowed mafias to use buildings without such NOCs,” Senator Azam Khan Sawati said.

The BCS director responded that the authority had issued notices to the owner of Centaurus Mall. “He has now submitted fresh plans to get the completion certificates. They will be approved in the coming months, subject to the removal of violations,” he said.

He further informed the committee that the authority had sealed the premises of Grand Hyatt after the cancelation of its lease agreement. However, Senator Azam Sawati and Kamil Ali Agha said that construction work was still underway at the site.

However, the Islamabad mayor assured the committee that he would personally recheck the situation by visiting the site. “According to my knowledge, there is no construction work underway at present,” he said.

Senator Kamil Ali Agha questioned the CDA chairman about the future of Grand Hyatt. In response, Mayor Shaikh Ansar Aziz said that the CDA would soon ask people who had invested in the project to submit their claims with proof of financial transactions.

When questioned by Senator Talha about what the building would be later used for, the mayor responded that the federal government would take the decision.

The committee also discussed the issue of restrictions on the height of buildings in the capital.

The mayor informed the committee that he had asked the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to increase the limit for building height in Islamabad. “The CDA has already taken up the issue of maximum height for skyscrapers in the city with the CAA. We have requested the CAA to fix the maximum height limit. So that the construction of high-rise buildings can be facilitated in future,” he said. The mayor said that the aviation authorities were considering the issue by keeping in view the technical aspects of air traffic control and the fly-pasts performed by Pakistan Air Force on Pakistan Day Parade every year.

The committee also discussed complaints against private schools.

Representative of Parents Association of School Students had accused private schools for over-charging fees and allowing smoking in campuses. Private Educational Institutions Regulatory Authority (PEIRA) Chairman Hassnat Qurashi said that he had also received some general complaints in this regards, but nobody had mentioned a place or institute specifically.

Senator Talha Mehmood directed the PEIRA chairman to write letters to the Narcotics Control director general, the Islamabad IGP and the Islamabad commissioner to inform him about the aforementioned complaints.

He directed committee staff to summon the officials in the next meeting of the committee.

Senator Hidayatullah, Senator Najma Hameed, Senator Saifullah Bangash, Senator Mian Muhammad Ateeq Shaikh also attended the meeting.