Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: Despite the passage of a month, the administration of all the four provinces of the country and Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) appear lethargic in formulating their recommendations for a shelter strategy under the National Housing Policy for the improvement of housing conditions of the low income class.

Similarly the provinces and the ICT have also failed to bring out any concrete recommendations for the National Slum Upgrading Strategy, which is not only aimed at improving the condition of slums but also preventing the growth of slums in future.

According to sources privy to the development regarding formulation of a national policy to regularise the katchi abadis and provision of shelter to low income people, a meeting of the Expert Working Group (EWG) was held on May 23 with the Secretary Law and Justice Commission of Pakistan Sarwar Khan in the chair. Provincial officers of local governments and housing departments attended the meeting along with officials of the Ministry of Climate Change and members of the EWG. Interestingly Capital Development Authority (CDA), who started operation against slums and issue of Katchi Abadi unearthed, no senior official of the said authority attended the meeting.

Sources said that the meeting reviewed the Progress Review against Policy submitted in the top court. The Supreme Court of Pakistan while appointing the Secretary Law and Justice Commission Sarwar Khan as coordinator of EWG directed the summoning of a meeting within 15 days. It also directed the submission of its report before the court within a month.

Sources said that the EWG concluded that the Ministry of Climate Change had a lead role to draft a policy regarding settlement of homeless people as the matter had been transferred from the Ministry of Housing.

Sources inside the Law and Justice Commission said that the provinces the and ICT would separately establish Slum Rehabilitation Wings on July 27. The meeting also deliberated that the survey including collection of data and identification of a map for katchi abadis would be completed in approximately six months after formulation of a concise policy.

According to sources, it further revealed that there were no Low Income Housing Provisions in Punjab, Sindh and Baluchistan while there was no concept of low income housing but a scheme had been launched in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Similarly the CDA has a Low Income Housing Provision and it will share the same with the EWG on June 6.

Similarly there is no plan for land utilisation in Punjab and Sindh while KP is working on formulation of a plan and Balochistan has already completed its work, sources added.

Sources also said that formulation of a final policy includes an action plan, monitoring framework, institutional arrangements, organisational framework, tentative budgets and land inventories. A time frame for land inventories will be given in the Policy by July 2016.

Sources further said that the next meeting of the EWG is expected to be held on May 31 (today) while the next
date of hearing of the katchi abadi case is fixed for Wednesday (tomorrow).