LDA seeks proposals frommarriage halls to devise policy

LAHORE: To formulate a policy under the guideline given by the Supreme Court, Lahore Development Authority has also started collecting proposals from the owners of city marriage halls and marquees as well as their associations.

Officials said repeated meetings were held between different factions of Lahore Marriage Halls Association as well as owners of different marriage halls and marquees with the LDA director general as well as with the senior officers of LDA’s Town Planning wing.

Hafiz Muhammad Rauf, President Lahore Marriage Halls Association (South Zone) while talking with the scribe said various proposals were under discussion and marriage halls association has called a grand meeting to be held at a marriage hall in Gulberg today (Tuesday), in which marriage hall owners will finalise their proposals. “These proposals will then be handed over to the LDA DG for consideration,” he added.

He said marriage hall owners have already developed a consensus that every marriage hall/marquee should provide adequate parking to its customers. “We are going to propose provision of parking by one car per 500 sq/ft formula to the LDA,” he revealed, adding a marquee should left a space of 30ft at its front and 13ft on each side other than the parking space according to the above-mentioned parking formula.

The LDA officials said that as per LDA rules the minimum land required for setting up a marquee was eight kanal out of which four kanal to be left as parking whereas at least four kanal land was necessary for constructing a marriage hall with two kanal to be left vacant for parking vehicles.

They said the recent order of the SC said, “Pursuant to our earlier orders, LDA Director General is directed to formulate a new policy for the purpose of the marriage halls/marquees etc within a period of one month. The applicants who are seeking protection of their already constructed/established marriage halls/marquees etc shall be strictly dealt with in accordance with the policy so formulated and till then the demolition should not take place.”

Wasa MD: Lahore Development Authority (LDA) has empowered Wasa managing director to make appointments, including transfers and postings to posts in Grade-19 in the agency. The decision was taken in the meeting of LDA governing body held here Monday. The powers of Wasa MD were enhanced in order to improve the official business of the agency. The meeting approved 235 new posts, including 130 posts of sewer men, in the revised budget 2017-18 of Wasa in view of the expanded service area of the agency.

Adviser to the chief minister and member of the LDA governing body Khwaja Ahmad Hassaan chaired the meeting which was attended by members of provincial assembly, including Bao Muhammad Akhtar from Lahore and Rana Muhammad Arshad from Nankana Sahib, LDA Director General Zahid Akhtar Zaman, Wasa Managing Director Sayed Zahid Aziz, Additional Director Generals Samia Saleem and Zeeshan Shabbir Rana, Chief Town Planner Sayed Nadeem Akhter Zaid, Chief Metropolitan Planner Waheed Ahmad Butt, Chief Engineer Tepa Mazhar Hussain Khan and representatives of the provincial Local Governments, Housing, P&D and Finance Departments as well as Commissioner Lahore Division.

The meeting decided to constitute an 11-member executive committee, headed by LDA director general in order to operationalise the sports complexes being constructed in the 11 constituencies of National Assembly in Lahore District. Other members of the executive committee will include Director General Sports, Punjab, Deputy Commissioner, Lahore, Additional Director General, (HQ) LDA (ex-officio Secretary LDA Sports Complexes), Chief Engineer (UD Wing), LDA and other officers and members. The committee will be responsible for running these sports complexes on self-sustainability basis and looking after over all operational, human resource and finance management issues of these facilities.

The meeting decided to restore facility of free-of-cost water supply to widows of deceased Wasa employees, which had earlier been withdrawn, on humanitarian grounds as per previous practice.

The governing body gave a go-ahead for widening and improvement of Barkat Ali Road, from Jagawar Chowk, Khyban-e-Firdousi to Jutt Chowk, Johar Town at a cost of Rs53.95 million. The road will be converted into dual carriageway to minimise the traffic load at Allah Hoo Roundabout. Improvement and carpeting of Shan Bhatti Road, from Southern by-pass, Johar Town to Ali Town at Raiwind Road, will be undertaken at a cost of Rs47.115 million. Restoration of road cuts made by Wasa in Ayubia Market, New Muslim Town will cost Rs24.85 million. Similarly rehabilitation of roads in LDA Schemes like MA Johar Town, Gulberg and Allama Iqbal Town, will cost Rs80 million.

The governing body approved the latest layout plan of LDA City Housing Scheme spreading over 58,234 kanal and allowed adjustment of scattered industries falling within the scheme at one site adjacent to Kahna Kaacha Road. It decided to allow minor adjustment in layout plan with the approval of LDA Director General due to the new issue at later stage.

The meeting allowed to reduce the condition of right of way (ROW) to 60 feet for installation of petrol pumps and CNG filling stations in the districts of Kasur, Sheikhupura and Nankana Sahib. However, the minimum ROW of 80 feet would be intact in the Lahore District. It amended scheme plan of LDA Avenue-One and allowed construction of road on alternate site for providing to access to 117 developed plots on B Block. The meeting allowed changing location of sites reserved for mosque, petrol pump and college for boys in Civic Centre Jubilee Town and conversion of 24 residential plots into commercial plots for reinvigorating the revenue potential of the area.

The meeting accorded approval for allotment of plot No 41, Block-Civic Centre, MA Johar Town, Lahore, measuring 1285.20 Sqm (approximately) to Punjab Seed Corporation at reserved price equal to the market value of a residential plot in the vicinity as assessed by the Price Assessment Committee, LDA. The meeting approved construction of 10 duplex houses, each spreading over 10 marlas, for LDA employees at jubilee town, Lahore.

These houses have been designed as double storied structure which will provide two residences in each plot. Thus total 20 residences will be available for officers/officials of LDA for allotment.