ISLAMABAD: The Capital Development Authority (CDA) on Thursday launched yet another operation in Ghauri Town, one of the largest unauthorised housing societies in Islamabad.

The CDA team backed by Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) administration sealed 23 premises mainly offices of property dealers.

“In the first phase, 23 premises particularly offices of realestate agents and management offices were sealed in addition to three under-construction buildings,” said a CDA press release.

It said several times the CDA had advised and warned the general public not to make investments in the housing society. However, construction activities and sale/purchase were still going on in the society. The statement said in order to curtail further construction and stop sale/purchase the operation had been launched.

In June 2017, CDA had sealed the offices of Ghauri Town but reopened them within a month after obtaining an undertaking from its management.

In an affidavit, the society management had said: “We shall not carry out any further development in the existing phase of Ghauri Town launched, managed and marketed by us without due approval of CDA.”

The agreement also said: “The society would provide to the CDA the requisite documents for its new and ongoing phases within 90 days from today (July 13) for processing of a layout plan and the NOC as per the requirement of the CDA.”

However, so far, no action has been taken against violation of the affidavit.

CDA spokesman Syed Safdar Ali said it was not true that the civic agency did not take action against operators of illegal housing schemes.

“In this operation, in the first phase, we targeted offices of property dealers to discourage sale and purchase of plots. In the next phase, we will move towards the society’s operators,” he said.

Published in Dawn, April 26th, 2019