FGEHF housing scheme: Senate body constitutes sub-committee to monitor land purchase

The Senate Standing Committee on Housing and Works on Wednesday constituted a sub-committee to look into matter of land purchase by Pakistan Housing Authority (PHA) for Federal Government Employees Housing Foundation (FGEHF) Scheme, Phase-IV, Bhara Kahu, Islamabad. The meeting of the committee was held under the chairmanship of Senator Maulana Tanveer-ul-Haq Thanvi. The sub-committee will comprise Senators Shahi Syed, Saeed-ul-Hassan Mandokhail and Sajjad Turi.
Senator Sajjad Turi suggested that if the parties are not agreed over resolving of issues being faced by the people who paid money for plots, the government must initiate a comprehensive inquiry into the matter and all those should be fixed. The committee discussed the issues in detail pertaining to Senate question No 121 asked by Senator Sardar Muhammad Azam Khan Musakhel over "the number of members of the Executive Committee of the FGEHF which approved purchase of land for housing scheme, Phase-IV, Bhara Kahu, Islamabad in 2009" referred by the House in the sitting of the Senate held on July 27, 2016.
The committee members recommended that a transparent inquiry should be held into the matter as why such a delay was caused in initiating developmental work on the schemes despite the fact that the people already paid the amount. The committee also adopted the report of the sub-committee on Housing and Works on FGEHF project, Bhara Kahu, Islamabad.
Senior officials of the ministry of housing and works said that about 36,000 employees had registered themselves in the scheme, adding that housing foundation made an agreement with M/s Green Tree a private contractor, for purchase of land measuring 3153 kanals seven marlas in Islamabad at Rs 686 millions.
"M/s Green provided a map consisting of 3244 plots which was sanctioned by the Capital Development Authority (CDA). Briefing the meeting, the PHA officials said that in order to determine the actual numbers of plots, services of National Engineering Services of Pakistan (NESPAK) were obtained. The NESPAK after conducting a detailed survey submitted a report saying that physically 3,244 plots could not be made due to some technical issues and the structure of the land and to meet the requisite number of plots PHA must purchase additional 800 kanals, they further suggested.
The officials said recently, as a result of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) intervention, an agreement is being signed by the both parties Housing Foundation and M/s Green Tree. They said the M/s Green Tree is bound to provide developed plots as per agreement which was approved by the Executive Committee in its meeting held on 15-12-2015. It is therefore expected that the development work on the scheme should be started soon and completed without further delay. The meeting was attended by Senators Sajjad Turi, Saeed-ul-Hassan Mandokhail, Muhammad Zafarullah Khan Dhandla, Haji Saifullah Khan Bangash and mover Senator Sardar Muhammad Azam Khan Musakhel. Senior officials of the ministry of housing and works, federal government employees housing foundation and M/S Green Tree also attended the meeting.