The Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) has issued show-cause notices to the owners and developers of 13 illegal housing schemes and land sub-divisions for unauthorised development, illegal plot bookings and unlawful advertising.
RDA issues notices to 13 illegal housing schemes, warns investors
RAWALPINDI, Jul 29 (APP): The Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA) has issued show-cause notices to the owners and developers of 13 illegal housing schemes and land sub-divisions for unauthorised development, illegal plot bookings and unlawful advertising.
According to the RDA spokesman, the action was taken by the Metropolitan Planning and Traffic Engineering (MP&TE) Directorate on the directions of the Commissioner, Rawalpindi Division, and the Director General, RDA, Salman Ghani, as part of the authority’s ongoing drive against illegal and unapproved housing schemes.
The notices were issued to Bahria Town Phase-VIII Extension, Capital Smart City Phase-III, Qurtaba City Extension, Blue Sky Garden, Aqua Green Farms, Mughal Farms on Mari Jabbar Road, Kohistan Enclave Extension-I, the farmhouses of Azhar Kyani, Fakhar Kyani and Nadeem Qureshi on Kallar Syedan Road, Sagri, the land sub-division of Muhammad Jamil on Kallar Syedan Road, Shah Bagh, the land sub-division project of Ali Properties and Developers on Sarwar Shaheen Road, Mandra, Bhagwal Valley, a project of Raqba Tarash Builders and Developers at Mandra, the farmhouses of Saleem Baloch near Mandra-Chakwal Road, Bhakar Adda, and Sakhi Town, a project of Zone Property on Mandra-Chakwal Road.
The schemes allegedly violated Section 12(5) of the Punjab Development of Cities Act, 1976, and Rule 4 of the Punjab Development Authorities Private Housing Schemes Rules, 2021.
The spokesman said that RDA directed the sponsors to immediately stop all development work, advertising and the sale or purchase of plots, and submit their replies within seven days of receiving the notices. It warned that failure to respond would result in legal proceedings under the relevant laws without further notice.
The RDA also cautioned the public against investing in illegal housing schemes and advised prospective buyers to verify the approval status of any project before making an investment.
It said that under Section 37 of the Punjab Development of Cities Act, 1976, daily penalties ranging from Rs5,000 to Rs20,000 could be imposed depending on the size of a scheme.
The authority further said it had written to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), FIA Cyber Crime Wing and Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL), drawing attention to the alleged illegal promotion of unapproved housing schemes through social media, WhatsApp, YouTube and other online platforms, where developers had falsely claimed to possess RDA no-objection certificates (NOCs).
