ISLAMABAD: The Capital Development Authority (CDA) on Wednesday said 60pc citizens of Islamabad were satisfied with the services being provided to them by the civic agency while 40pc demanded improvement.

CDA’s member finance Rana Shakeel Asghar and member administration Amir Abbas Khan, while addressing a press conference on Wednesday, said the CDA management had obtained the public opinion through a survey.

They said for the first time the CDA conducted a survey to get feedback from citizens on the authority’s performance in order to further improve service delivery.

According to the survey, 60pc people expressed satisfaction over the question asked from the citizens regarding the maintenance of green areas of Islamabad and care of plants, 65pc are satisfied with the rehabilitation of streetlights, 60pc with the steps taken by the CDA to end occupation and encroachment on government property, 45pc said waste disposal and its collection was timely while 77pc people were satisfied with the restoration and replacement of streetlights, 64pc with cleanliness and 34pc with road drainage and road repairs, they said.

The member administration said the CDA had developed an integrated system for garbage collection and disposal in urban as well as rural areas.

In this regard, 1,000 trolleys and 200 skips havebeen placed in the city while a tender has been issued for another 150 skips and 500 trolleys.

The member finance said so far about 230 parks had been rehabilitated while other facilities including jogging tracks, cycling tracks and walking tracks in green areas have been added to different areas of the city.

Similarly, restoration work is being completed in F-9 Park in which all lights have been restored, renovation work, including civil work and upgradation of cricket ground have been completed.

The member finance said new parks were being constructed on Islamabad Expressway near Quaid-i-Azam Portrait, H-8, Diplomatic Enclave, and Park Enclave and along the Islamabad Highway.

Regarding waste disposal in Islamabad, it was informed that a decision has also been taken to set up a joint dumping site for Islamabad and Rawalpindi where waste will be disposed of using modern scientific methods.

He said in order to meet the water needs of Islamabad, it was informed that apart from long term projects, short term projects are also being undertaken besides construction of two new dams in Islamabad, eight new tube wells and six damaged ones have been repaired which has significantly reduced water complaints.

Published in Dawn, October 7th, 2021