December 30, 2006	Saturday	Zilhaj 08, 1427

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RAWALPINDI, Dec 29: Over 10,000 housing units in different areas of the city are being used for commercial purposes without fulfilling the legal requirements as the row between the city district government and Rawal Town administration over collection of commercialization fee deepens, official sources told Dawn on Friday.

The sources said that majority of the illegal shops and business centers in the city were owned by the elected representatives and influential people.

They said the inordinate delay in solving the commercialization issue is not only causing a huge revenue loss to the city district government but also encouraging the mushrooming of commercial activities like running of private schools, beauty parlors, clinics, furniture shops, general stores and hotels in different residential areas.

This unlawful practice is at its peak in Satellite Town, Millat Colony, Khayaban-e-Sir Syed, People’s Colony, Saidpur Housing Scheme, Ghausia Colony and other residential areas. The owner of a house is required to deposit 20 per cent of the land value with the civic agency concerned before using his property for commercial purposes.

The civic agencies concerned are charging Rs1,50,000 as commercialization fee for a piece of land valuing Rs3 million, while 10,000 housing being used for commercial purposes are not paying even a single penny to the municipal administrations.

Opposition leader in Rawal Town Council Rana Sohail Pasha says this illegal practice has increased to the extent that the town administration can recover Rs1 billion from the people running illegal commercial outlets. “The revenue loss of commercialization fee is also impacting on the pace of development activities in the area,” he added.

The district administration had taken the charge of collecting commercial fee from Rawal Town a year back but it lacks staff, inspectors and the necessary infrastructure to manage and launch crackdowns on the illegal commercial buildings.

A source in the RDA told this reporter that 60 per cent buildings were being used illegally for commercial purposes in 14 residential schemes falling in the limits of the authority. Ironically, the building inspectors are no more active due to the ongoing dispute between the district government and Rawal Town administration.

The Rawal Town has not only refused to transfer the entire record of commercialization and its staff to the district government but also moved court to get back the commercialization charge taken over by the city district government.

These commercial outlets lack parking lots leaving the visitors with no option but to park their vehicles on the roadside creating traffic congestions in the already congested areas.