Workshop reviews ICT master plan of zone IV: 20000 acres of land available for housing schemes

The federal government has been asked to utilise about 20,000 acres of land, which is still available in the rural areas of the federal capital for residential purposes to overcome housing problems. The present big settlements in Zone-IV should not be disturbed, instead of declaring these areas as model villages to stop mushrooming growth of ill-planned construction there. People from all walks of the society stated this while addressing at a one-day workshop about "Review of Master Plan of Zone IV" on Tuesday to promote model villages to overcome housing problem in the Capital.
Islamabad Master Plan Consultant Mott McDonald Pakistan (Pvt) Ltd and CDA organised the workshop at a local hotel. The participants said that Zone-IV was the lifeline of Rawalpindi and Islamabad, rich in water resources and the most scenic place in Islamabad. They said Zone IV of the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT), was the large area measuring about 70,000 acres, bounded by Islamabad Highway in the west, Zone V in the south, Murree Road in the north and ICT limits in the east.
A total of 50,000 acres of land in Zone-IV has been taken by various governments departments, agro-farming, poultry and vegetable schemes, model villages, buffer zone etc. Consultants are also in the process of updating the current situation of Zone IV of Islamabad Capital Territory.
The workshop is part of the exercise as an opinion seeking campaign of all public representatives, residents of Islamabad, representatives of the professional bodies, co-operative societies, NGOs, and planners in the review of original document of master plan.
They said the concept of urbanisation should be shifted to rural areas of the capital so that the people did not come to city for better facilities. Population in the area was increasing due to high price of land in Islamabad and 31 per cent out of them were migrants.
The participants were critical of the indifferent attitude of CDA for not opening any new residential sector for last 15 years thus creating a lot of residential problems for the dwellers of the city.
They said serious efforts should be made to open new sectors in the Capital on emergency basis. They said the price of land in Islamabad was much higher and it had reached beyond the purchase limits of people, and ultimately they were shifting towards the rural areas.
The concept of multi storey housing schemes in Zone-IV and inviting the private sector to less the burden on CDA could overcome the housing problem there, they proposed. They also called for a proper regulatory and monitoring mechanism in CDA towards Islamabad's problems. After getting proposals from the stakeholder, the review plan of Zone IV would be presented before CDA Board for approval in the second week of April, next.
The CDA was in the process of reviewing ICT zoning regulations 1992, review of existing master plan of Islamabad up to the year 2030, prepare Master Plan of Zone-IV of the ICT and detailed Action Programme for the period 2005-2010 for the housing, water supply and urbanisation in rural areas of Islamabad.