RAWALPINDI: The governing body of the Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) was formed a month ago, but a meeting for drafting a new policy for the civic body is yet to be called.

The Punjab Cabinet had approved the names of three Punjab MPAs and two technical members for the governing body on Feb 8 and the Punjab Urban Development and Public Health Engineering Department had issued the notification on Feb 22.

According to the notification, PTI MPAs Umer Tanveer from PP-15, Chaudhry Adnan from PP-11 and Momina Waheed are members for the governing body while Haroon Kamal Hashmi, PTI Rawalpindi district president and Aamer Saleem have been nominated technical members.

According to the law, the governing body has 16 members including secretaries of finance, local government, urban development, commissioner Rawalpindi, deputy commissioner, mayor Rawalpindi, RDA director general, Water and Sanitation Agency (Wasa) managing director, three MPAs and two technical members.

Names of three MPAs, two technical members were approved on Feb 8, notified on Feb 22

After the appointment of the five members, the governing body was completed but RDA Chairman Arif Abbasi did not call a meeting, due to which many projects and work is pending.

A senior official toldDawnthat RDA wanted to start the construction of plazas on Murree Road, near Liaquat Bagh, the commercialization of 25 roads, rain harvesting wells in private houses, housing schemes and many others.

He said the civic agency cannot start new projects without the approval of its governing body. He said RDA wants to bring private housing societies into Wasa’s tax net for using ground water, which is also to be approved by the governing body.

A local PTI leader toldDawnthere are differences in opinion in the party about members of the governing body as local leaders want to include city MPAs Ejaz Khan Jazi, Latasab Satti and Malik Taimor Masood in the body, but the government had nominated others after consultation with allies.

He said the difference is the reason the meeting has not been called for drafting new policy for urban development and future planning.

The RDA chairman toldDawnthat the meeting will likely be called next month but a date has not been finalized.

However, he denied any division among local party leaders, saying they accept the decision of the PTI-led government.

He said the Punjab Urban Development and Public Health Engineering Department had suggested other names, but cabinet had not gone with them.

He said RDA has finalized the governing body’s agenda.

“We will present a proposal for constructing a commercial plaza on Murree Road near Liaquat Bagh and Committee Chowk near Mother and Child filter clinic,” he said.

He said RDA also wants to utilize 45 kanals of land of Water Works on Saidpur Road, commonly known as Kali Tanki.

He said the land is currently under Wasa control and will be used for the construction of a plaza and apartments for the civic agency’s employees after approval from the governing body.

He said RDA would also seek approval from the governing body to make it compulsory for private housing societies to pay a water bill to Wasa for their tubewells as they are installed on land under administrative control of RDA.

Published in Dawn, March 25th, 2019