CDA fails to implement its high-rise building bylaws

The Capital Development Authority (CDA) has failed to implement its building bylaws, particularly the ban on the use of residential buildings for commercial purposes, enforcing under construction buildings to be covered with a green curtain and ensuring that owners of high rise buildings have adequate parking lots.
Builders, owners of high rise buildings as well as residents are openly violating CDA bylaws due to the failure of the Authority to implement the bye laws, which is not only creating problems for citizens but also affecting the beauty of the city, a senior CDA official said.
The official said that the use of residential buildings for commercial purposes is on the rise, which is creating problems for other residents of the locality. Under the CDA building regulations the plot or building in Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) can be used only for the purpose for which it has been allotted, he said. He said that commercial use of residential buildings may render the owner and the occupant of the building liable to penalty and eviction from the building and the allotment deed of the plot may also be cancelled.
The official said that according to the law small temporary buildings or structures of approved size for storage purposes can be constructed for the duration of the construction of buildings on the same plot or on adjacent land with proper approval of the authority before starting construction. "Such a building or structure must be removed immediately after the main structure is constructed or earlier if so directed by the Authority," he said.
The construction of additional rooms and floors is also on the rise in the city in violation of approved layout plan. The CDA official said that the civic body's concerned directorate has failed to implement the law that makes it mandatory for the builders to cover the under-construction buildings with a green curtain to protect the citizens from dust and other hazardous construction materials. The Authority gives approval for the construction of buildings, but its concerned directorate does not check the work to ensure protection of the people from the dust, he added.
He said that under the law, builders are not only bound to cover the under-construction buildings with a green curtain but also not place mud, sand or crush on the roads or street side. According to CDA's building bylaws, the Authority approves the lay out plan and design of those buildings which have adequate space for parking. But a number of high-rise buildings are being constructed without adequate parking lots which is one of the main reasons for the growing parking problem in the city, he said. The official said that most of the builders do not follow the design during the construction and they construct the buildings without the parking space shown in the design.