ISLAMABAD: A Senate panel took up stalled development work in G-14 and formed a subcommittee to look into the matter at a meeting on Monday.

The Senate Functional Committee on Government Assurances was briefed on disputes between the Capital Development Authority (CDA) and the Federal Government Employees Housing Foundation (FGEHF) over the foundation’s G-14 housing project.

The committee was surprised to learn that 15 years later, people still did not know where they plots they have bought are located because no development work has been carried out so far.

The CDA’s working paper presented before the committee said that according to a CDA board decision from 2000, the authority was supposed to sell the sector’s commercial areas and provide municipal services. Later, a ministerial committee and the Federal Ombudsman decided in favour of the FGEHF.

FECHS, Jinnah Garden joint venture and constitutional amendment for employment quotas also taken up

FGEHF officials said the foundation has every right to the sector’s commercial areas as they are also supposed to provide allottees services. An interior ministry official said his ministry supports the decision of the inter-ministerial committee.

A CDA official said the FGEHF case related to sectors F-14 and F-15 is in court and the CDA cannot make a decision until that case is disposed of.

The authority’s working paper said the CDA board in its meeting on Dec 11, 2018, discussed the inter-ministerial committee’s recommendations and decided to defer the issue, seeking more information to reach a conclusion.

The board decided: “The decision of CDA board 08-1-2001 is to be re-examined, read with the recent outcome of the Minutes of meeting issued by inter ministerial committee. The decision of Islamabad High Court in F-14/15 Scheme of FGEHF, further suspended by Supreme Court of Pakistan needs to be re-examined, for its implications in the instant matter.”

After hearing the FGEHF and the CDA’s divergent views, the committee formed a subcommittee with Senator Fida Mohammad as its convenor and senators Dr Asad Ashraf and Abida Mohammad Azeem as members to investigate the matter and present a report.

The committee was also told by the Housing Secretary Dr Imran Zeb that 680 allottees of G-14/3 have been allowed to build houses and some have already submitted building plans. The committee asked the ministry submit the permission letter issued to the committee.

Dr Zeb also told the committee that the double road between G-13 and G-14 has been constructed, to which senators Liaqat Khan Tarakai and Asad Ashraf said it has been constructed without a pavement.

The committee directed the housing ministry to construct a pavement along the road on a priority basis.

FECHS and Jinnah Garden joint venture

The committee also took up the joint venture of the Federal Employees Cooperative Housing Society (FECHS) and the Jinnah Garden housing scheme.

Members were told that under the joint venture of the National Assembly’s housing society and Jinnah Garden, the former paid Rs430 million for 1,097 plots on 656 kanals of land, but has so far only been given possession of 363 plots and people have been made to wait eight years.

The committee was told that the FECHS, on the directives of a parliamentarycommittee, agreed to a joint venture under which 1,030 kanals of FECHS land would be given to Jinnah Garden in exchange for developed plots for FECHS members.

But the committee was told that despite giving the land and Rs800,000 in development charges, Jinnah Garden did not give the majority of FECHS members possession.

The committee directed the Jinnah Garden management to provide plots to FECHS members as soon as possible. It also referred the matter to a subcommittee.

Employment quota constitutional amendment

The committee also discussed agenda items related to a constitutional amendment for job quotas.

The meeting was told that the government is committed to bringing a constitutional amendment regarding employment quotas but this has to be initiated by the Ministry of Law and Justice.

The ministry told the meeting that the matter has to be taken to the Cabinet Committee for the Disposal of Legislative Cases again, because there were some reservations regarding extending the quota every few years.

The committee observed that reservation on quota extension can be accepted only one all areas get equal opportunities of development and education. The committee decided to hear the law and justice minister on the matter and will call another meeting this week.

Published in Dawn, July 2nd, 2019