According to a media report, senior bureaucrats are putting pressure on the Capital Development Authority (CDA) to create plots in expensive sectors of Islamabad to allot them to BS-22 officers.

The background of this story is that the former prime minister approved a scheme for allotment of additional plots for federal secretaries and senior bureaucrats in BS-22; civil servants in BS-17 and above are allotted only one plot at the time of retirement. This was a special favour for senior bureaucrats to oblige them for their services beyond the call of duty. The Public Accounts Committee has reservations about this scheme.

A recent report has published the names of secretaries who have costly plots allotted in Sector D-12. Many senior bureaucrats have plots in exclusive schemes in their own names or in the names of their family members.

For example, some of them have got allotted very expensive plots in the National Police Foundation Housing Scheme in Sector E-11 at throwaway price though entitled and deserving police officers have been denied plots in this prestigious scheme by the NPF management. The market price of a kanal size plot in E-11 is more than Rs.0.2million. Invest a million and earn 20 millions. This is a simple and easy way to become a millionaire overnight for senior bureaucrats.

Role of the civil service world over is to serve the people by making people-friendly policies. In Pakistan, the senior bureaucrats make only self-serving policies; they are least interested in the welfare of junior officers and the common man.

A National Commission is called for to probe the allotment of plots and farm-houses in the capital to bureaucrats and their cronies.

Asghar Mahmood Islamabad