ISLAMABAD, May 18: While the Punjab government and Islamabad’s civic agency have been at loggerheads over the ownership of Margallah reserve forest, over 1,500 acres in the area has been occupied by land grabbers.

Dr Mohammad Rafique, the chief conservator Punjab, told Dawn that the reserve forest land of the province was being encroached by land grabbers and the matter needed to be addressed.

He asserted: “We have all the record about the territorial jurisdiction and the reserve forest land with our revenue department.” Dr Mr Rafique said added that the CDA and the Punjab government had held two meetings on the issue. “Our former provincial minister for law Rana Sanaullah had also taken up the matter with the federal government but it is yet to be resolved.”

During the meetings, it was conveyed to the federal government that the reserve forest land belonged to the Punjab government. However, the federal government is yet to give its input,” he said.

The chief conservator maintained that all the reserve forest land belonged to Punjab and “our department has again taken up the matter with the federal government and hopefully we will be able to get back the land from Islamabad.”

It is pertinent to mention that in November 2012 the Punjab government in a letter to the cabinet division had stated: “The Punjab government had leased Margalla reserve forest land measuring 11,870 acres to the CDA under an agreement. The lease agreement was signed between the then secretary agriculture West Pakistan and the horticulture directorate of the CDA in the 1960s, and the lease expired in 1991,” he added.

A visit to the 15-kilometre-long stretch of the forest land showed that it had been occupied by influential people and political personalities of the country. At a few places, modern huts have been established by unknown people while residential units and farmhouses have also cropped up.

According to a resident of the area, the construction on the forest land started in 2007 and the number of farmhouses and residential units kept on increasing.

The stretch of land starts from the CDA residential sectors of D-11, D-12, C-13, C-14, C-15 and C-16.

“We have no record of the land and people are buying plots from those who have encroached upon it,” said a Patwari of the local administration.

Even new transfer deeds are being filed with the local administration,” he said, refusing to share his name with this reporter.

On the other hand, a senior CDA land directorate official maintained: “We have no record because this forest land belongs to the governments of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.”

The Margalla Hills land was declared a ‘reserved forest’ in 1901 under the British colonial rule,” remarked a cabinet division official.

He said soon after the shifting of the federal capital to Islamabad in 1960s, it was decided by the federal government that the reserved forest land would not be used for any commercial or residential purpose.

The official said the record of the land was also with the Punjab government since it was managing part of the forest land.

“It’s almost 1,200 acres of reserve forest land encroached upon by land grabbers,” the official added.

When asked why the forest land was being encroached and purchased by political personalities and famous property contractors of the city, he maintained: “The ICT administration, CDA and the Punjab government should address the matter.”

When contacted, CDA Chairman Syed Tahir Shahbaz admitted that a territorial dispute existed on the reserve forest land with the Punjab government. Besides, there is also the issue of encroachment.

“We will be holding a meeting with the Punjab government (chief conservator) to resolve the issue. The chief commissioner Islamabad, Jawad Paul, will also attend the meeting,” said Mr Shahbaz.

He added that the environment department of the civic agency had already raised the matter with the authority’s senior hierarchy and “we are hopeful to limit the encroachment on the forest land once all the administrative issues are settled between the Punjab and the federal governments.”