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ISLAMABAD, Aug 7: Senate Chairman Mohammedmian Soomro on Thursday directed the authorities concerned to take expeditious measures for the speedy execution of Hazrat Bari Imam Shrine project.
Presiding over a meeting of the development and management committee of the shrine, he said provision of maximum facilities to the devotees should be the prime objective of the committee.
The committee, headed by the senate chairman, has been formed by Prime Minister Zafarullah Khan Jamali recently.
The committee was briefed about the acquisition of land for the expansion of the project as well as the physical features to be developed within the outer boundaries of the shrine’s premises.
The meeting was informed that adequate land was available and that the CDA had already paid proper compensation to the landowners.
The committee ordered proper demarcation of the area for extension of the shrine and removal of encroachments.
The CDA was also directed to depute a project director to supervise the work.
Mr Soomro directed the authorities to complete all formalities on a priority basis to ensure smooth implementation of the project. He assured the committee that the prime minister’s secretariat could be approached if more funds were required.
PROBE DEMANDED: The action committee Noorpur Shahan (ACNS) has urged the prime minister to order a probe into illegal constructions outside Bari Imam.
An official of the CDA told Dawn that the project had been approved in 1978 with an estimated cost of Rs40 million but due to delay it had been revised four times and the cost of the Bari Imam shrine uplift project had escalated by over 700 per cent.
Under the plan, the old structure of the shrine was to be replaced by a new one, a mosque was to be built with the construction of concrete floor of the shrine’s compound.
A resident of Noorpur Shahan said due to faulty planning the shrine had lost its originality and natural look.
He complained that some years ago the development committee of the shrine had decided to close a spring in the shrine.
The spring was reportedly dug by Hazrat Bari Sarkar hundreds years ago, therefore people used to take bath in the water to cure different diseases.
