FAISALABAD, Nov 24: The Tehsil Municipal Administration (City) has earmarked a number of greenbelts, parks and gardens for setting up stalls under “Eid shopping festival” at the cost of city greenery.

The TMA has leased out important green belts, parks, gardens and open places to interested parties on nominal rent for setting up stalls of clothes, shoes, jewellry and food articles. Shopkeepers and national and multi-national companies have established their makeshift shops at these places which would continue till the third day of Eid.

The green belts of Madina Town, Gulistan Colony, D-Type Colony, Ghulam Muhammadabad, Canal Road, Peoples Colony, D-Grounds, Samanabad, Nisar Colony, Samundri Road, Jhang Road, Sargodha Road, Millat Road and other residential areas have been leased out to shopkeepers.

The TMA has also received scores of applications for stalls in Jinnah Garden, Fatima Jinnah Garden, Kaleem Shaheed Park and Canal Park.

Insiders told Dawn that City Nazim Mumtaz Ali Cheema had constituted a four-member committee to get maximum amount from the interested parties. Few thousand rupees were being deposited in the TMA account by showing fewer fees of stalls while a huge amount was being embezzled by the highups, they claimed.