ISLAMABAD: City managers are set to express their inability to seal the office of the inspector general of police (IGP) before the Supreme Court on Wednesday. The IGP office has sought one year for relocating from the residential area.

The CDA on Tuesday submitted a report to the apex court which is likely to take up the matter regarding the progress made by the civic agency on the directions issued by the court last year for removing non-conforming use of residential areas.

In the report, the civic agency stated that all property owners violating the CDA by-laws had been issued notices and follow-up action was underway. It, however, sought more time for compliance of the court orders to remove commercial activities from residential houses.

On the directive of the Supreme Court, the civic agency has been carrying out operations against the non-conforming use of residential buildings.

The CDA officials stated that over 1,500 commercial outlets, government offices, schools, embassies and private offices were operating in the residential areas. Of them, around 400 houses have stopped the non-conforming use.

The report said so for 123 houses had been sealed while around 275 owners of residential houses voluntarily removed the non-conforming use. The offices of the IGP Islamabad and the IGP motorways had also been directed to shift their offices from residential areas.

But the IGP Islamabad has sought at least one year for shifting of the Central Police Office from a residential house located in Sector F-7/1 to the new building at Sector G-11/4 which was still under-construction.

The report did not mention the official response of the IG motorways but an official in the CDA said the motorway police chief had also sought time.

About private schools operating in the residential areas, the report said their owners had obtained a stay order from the Islamabad High Court in 2014 and the CDA had submitted an application to the court for the vacation of the stay. Another application for the early hearing of the case has also been filed with the court.

It may be noted that there are around 350 private schools operating in the residential areas of the federal capital and without offering any alternative plan the CDA wants to remove them from the residential areas.

The report stated that Foreign Office had been requested to get the offices of foreign missions and embassies shifted from residential areas to the Diplomatic Enclave. In the last hearing of the case on January 21, the CDA had informed the apex court that there were 27 points in different sectors of the city where diplomatic missions had blocked roads, footpaths, streets, etc.

The report added that the PPP had stopped official activities in its office set up in a residential house in Sector G-6/4 and was shifting the office from there.

Published in Dawn, February 10th, 2016

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