PPP to raise NARC land issue in NA

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) has
decided to raise in the National Assembly the Capital Development Authority’s move to
convert the land of National Agricultural Research
Council (NARC) into a housing society.
In this regard, the PPP legislators — Dr Nafisa Shah, Dr Azra Fazal Pechuhu, Ms Shazia Marri, Beelum Hasnain and Imran Zafar Leghari — submitted an adjournment motion to the National Assembly Secretariat, questioning the government’s intention to take over the NARC land and to convert into a housing society.
According to the NARC management, the CDA eyes 1,400 acres of its land to build residential and commercial plots.
The adjournment motion states that the NARC is a premier research organisation of the country and the CDA’s proposal for taking over its land for rampant commercialisation shows where the priority of the government lies.
The motion further states that presently the country’s agriculture sector is suffering due to heavy taxes and high cost of inputs.
“Little is invested by way of research. Therefore, expressing our concern over this thoughtless policy, we would like the government to respond as to why the CDA is being allowed to convert the land for research into a housing estate,” states the motion.