ISLAMABAD: The revision of the master plan of Islamabad is in limbo, as the federal government is showing no urgency in forming a commission to initiate the long-delayed revision.

Doxiadis Associates, the Greece-based firm that prepared the master plan in 1960, had recommended its revision every 20 years to meet the needs of the time.

However, so far, no proper revision has been carried out. Successive governments, without seeking input from experts, have made selective changes, and over 50 amendments have been made to the blueprint of the city.

The incumbent government, some months ago, also made at least six major changes to the master plan of Islamabad — excluding four H-series sectors from Zone I (the planned sector area), ending their buffer zones and industrial status, and converting them into residential sectors.

Capital city faces a plethora of challenges as revision plan awaits cabinet nod

On the other hand, the city, without a revised master plan, is now facing several challenges, including unauthorised construction, slums, mushroom growth of unauthorised housing schemes, shrinking parking spaces, vanishing green areas and other planning issues.

Moreover, the city is experiencing a rapid increase in population, while water shortage remains one of the major challenges.

No new water source has been explored, and no new dam constructed in the last three decades or so.

The Capital Development Authority (CDA) is the custodian of Islamabad, however, the revision of the master plan is the mandate of a commission to be appointed by the federal government.

Sources said that the CDA has submitted the summary several times for the commission’s approval. However, it has yet to be presented before the federal cabinet.

When contacted on Sunday, the CDA spokesperson said, “The list of the proposed members of the Islamabad Master Plan Commission has been submitted to the Ministry of Interior and is being submitted to the cabinet for approval.”

Last year, Minister for Law and Justice Azam Nazeer Tarar promised on the floor of the Senate that the matter of the formation of the master plan commission would be placed before the cabinet in the next meeting.

However, the summary has not yet been presented for approval.

In February, a revised summary was moved by the CDA, increasing the number of proposed commission members from 15 to 20.

The proposed commission would be headed by the CDA chairman as convenor and would include experts from various fields including urban planning, regional planning, ecology, disaster risk management, water resources, building control, transport, and environment.

Previously, when the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) government came to power in 2018, it announced that the master plan would be revised, and then prime minister Imran Khan formed a commission.

However, the commission prepared only an interim report in 2020, which mainly focused on building by-laws and the regularisation of certain areas, including Banigala.

The revision of the master plan was left to an expert firm, which the CDA failed to hire, and the tenure of that commission expired some years ago.

Published in Dawn, April 14th, 2025