Tag: housing society

  • Farmers ‘harassed and threatened’: Human Rights Watch releases report on RUDA project

    Human Rights Watch (HRW) has released a report on Ravi Urban Development Authority (RUDA) project, stating that authorities are forcibly evicting thousands of farmers near the city of Lahore for a massive infrastructure project.

    The international organisation spoke to 14 farmers, who said they have been evicted or threatened with eviction since August 2020. According to them, not only have the authorities “harassed” them but have “criminally charged more than 100 farmers with resisting or refusing to hand over the land they occupied.”

    The report noted that in 2022, the Supreme Court allowed the government to continue development only on the land it had already acquired and for which it had paid compensation.

    Despite that farmers and activists alleged that the development authority has continued to seize land.

    Although the project claimed that it will ease Lahore’s many problems including pollution, sewage, water, housing, and employment, the report said otherwise.

    “Environmental groups have raised concerns that the project’s proposed changes to the flow of the Ravi River could significantly increase the risks of flooding. Pakistan’s Sindh province experienced catastrophic floods in mid-2022.”

    In 2022, former Chief Minister Pervaiz Elahi allocated 700 kanals of land for the construction of a journalists’ housing society in RUDA.

    However, journalists openly criticised the government and refused to accept the offer.

    In August 2020, then-Prime Minister Imran Khan laid the foundation stone of the controversial real estate project.

  • Three low-cost housing societies approved for Punjab

    Three low-cost housing societies approved for Punjab

    Mian Muhammad Aslam Iqbal, Punjab’s Minister for Housing and Urban Development, approved the launch of three low-cost housing societies on Thursday.

    This was announced at the 86th meeting of the Punjab Housing and Town Planning Agency (PHATA) board, which was presided over by the Housing Minister, at the agency’s office.

    These housing schemes will offer locals access to high-quality, low-cost homes:

    1. Al-Rasheed Garden, Gujranwala
    2. Al-Noor Garden Residencia, Sangla Hill
    3. Campbellpur Greens, Attock  

    According to The News, a monitoring committee was also formed to oversee the housing developments. The delegates also agreed on the development of pension laws for PHATA workers, as well as other administrative issues.

    Furthermore, in each of the housing complexes, a 20 per cent quota was set aside for the Naya Pakistan Housing Program (NPHP).

    The Minister stressed the need of assisting developers in order to promote a smooth working environment and stated that corruption or dishonesty will not be allowed in his team.

    He went on to say that the NPHP is a key priority for the province administration and that it intends to finish as many housing schemes as feasible in the shortest amount of time.

    Earlier this month, the Housing Minister stated his aim to accelerate the creation of low-cost housing projects, saying, “Low-cost housing schemes should be finished quickly by working day and night.”

    He also stated that a special cell will be established to encourage foreign Pakistanis to engage in the housing business.

  • PTA to take action against advertising of illegal housing societies on social media

    PTA to take action against advertising of illegal housing societies on social media

    The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) instructed housing societies that do not have a legal No Object Certificate (NOC) to refrain from advertising unauthorized businesses on social media platforms.

    According to a news release, the PTA has been approached by the Lahore Development Authority (LDA) in response to a direction given by the Lahore High Court in a writ case on March 30, 2022, with regard to banning advertisements of illegal housing societies on digital and social media.

    All non-approved housing societies that operate without valid NOC from the concerned authorities are encouraged to desist from publicising the unlawful business on social media platforms, or else the PTA will take action in accordance with its legal mandate.

  • Govt gives three housing units each to 19 bureaucrats

    Govt gives three housing units each to 19 bureaucrats

    A total of 19 bureaucrats of grade BS-22 secured three housing units each, including Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Establishment Shehzad Arbab.

    According to the papers obtained by Dawn, the officers had already been allotted a double-story “grey structures” house each in the Pakistan Housing Authority Foundation (PHAF) scheme.

    The PHAF traditionally built low-cost housing schemes for its members and this was the first time that it introduced a scheme for senior bureaucrats.

    Previously, former prime minister Nawaz Sharif had cancelled the allotment of “choice” apartments to influential bureaucrats in the same locality [PHAF] and ordered an investigation into the manipulated balloting carried out by the housing scheme.

    Not only this, the official documents say that 185 of the 588 bureaucrats right after this allotment were allotted plots in the capital’s new sectors of F-14 and F-15.

    Following this, the Federal Government Employees Housing Authority (FGEHA) recently allotted two plots each to senior bureaucrats, judges of superior courts, lawyers, and judicial officers of Islamabad’s subordinate judiciary.

    Earlier, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) ruled against the allotment of more than one plot to top bureaucrats at public expense under Article 25 of the Pakistan Constitution and then set aside the policy of allotment of the second plot and referred the matter to the federal cabinet.

    While talking to Dawn, Federal Minister for Law and Justice Barrister Farogh Naseem said the allotments would be examined in light of the IHC judgment. Federal information minister Fawad Chaudhry said, “The government is working on the issue in the light of the IHC directive and has formed a committee as well.”

    Initially, civil servants were entitled to one plot each only. However, in 2006, the then prime minister allowed two plots each for BS-22 officials.

    However, an insider said the policy to make such allotments had never been approved by the federal government.

  • Rs18 billion scam discovered in PAF housing society for martyrs

    Rs18 billion scam discovered in PAF housing society for martyrs

    An accountability court in Karachi was on Wednesday informed of massive fraud in Fazaia Housing Scheme Karachi (FHSK) by two builders with the connivance of Pakistan Air Force (PAF) officials, cheating people of billions of rupees.

    The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) had arrested Tanveer Ahmed and Bilal Tanveer, said to be associated with Maxim Properties, for allegedly depriving the public of Rs18 billion through investments in the FHSK.

    During the hearing, NAB told the court that the land was allocated to the heirs of martyrs, but only 30 units were allocated to their families out of the 8,400 planned housing units.

    According to the NAB, the detained builders, in connivance with the PAF officials, collected Rs18.2bn under the heads of form fees, registration, open certificate, standard and luxury apartments, surcharge, transfer fees, overseas apartments, overseas transfer fee, bungalows, the surcharge, transfer and proceedings fee for the bungalows and direct deposits.

    The suspects were produced in the court for a physical remand, which was extended by 14 days.