The provincial government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is going to make legislation for the management, control, allotment and cancellation of allotment of provincial buildings in the province. For the purpose, the KP Provincial Buildings (Management, Control and Allotment Bill, 2017 has been introduced in the provincial assembly. After passage from the provincial assembly, the Act will apply to all the government departments, offices, public office holders and provincial buildings in the province across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The provincial buildings will consists of office buildings, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Houses, government rest houses, mess and residential accommodation, which are owned and hired, managed and control by the Establishment and Administration Department of the government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and also those which are managed and controlled by the respective Deputy Commissioners in a district.
The government will notify an officer of Establishment and Administration Department as Estate Officer, who will be authorised by the competent authority to allot, cancel, extend and exchange any provincial building under the management and control of the department or evict any person or public office holder from such building in the manner as may be prescribed. However, in cases where the Estate Officer is himself the competent authority, no authorisation will be required.
Similarly, the government will notify an officer in each district as Estate Officer for that district, who will be authorised by the competent authority to allot, cancel, extend and exchange any provincial building under the management and control of the respective Deputy Commissioner or evict any person or public office holder from such building.
The Estate Office will maintain a pool of office buildings in his jurisdictions for allotment amongst government departments and offices and no government department, office or public office holder, as the case may be, will take possession of a provincial building without valid allotment by the competent authority.
The Establishment and Administration Department, at the provincial level within or outside the province and the Estate Office at the district level, within the concerned district will maintain, manage and reserve a pool of government rest houses to facilitate the public office holders and such other guests and dignitaries.
Under the law, a portion of government rest houses will be designated and reserved for certain government departments, offices or public office holder by the Establishment and Administration Department.
The Estate Office, at the provincial level or at the district level will also maintain a pool of residential accommodation from which eligible public office holders will be allotted residential accommodation and will be allotted, exchanged, retained, cancelled or vacated under prescribed manner and criteria.
In case where government provides resources to any government department, office or agency for the construction of its own pool of residential accommodation or where such government department, office or government agency already has such a pool, its employees will not be eligible for residential accommodation under this Act.
However, the Chief Minister may in cases of extreme hardships, grave security threat to the life of public office holder or exigencies of administration, allot to a public office holder a residential accommodation according to his entitlement, out of turn basis: Provided that the total number of such allotments, in a calendar year should not be more than four.
Under the law, the government may also reserve a special quota of residential accommodation for allotment to the son, daughter or spouse of the public office holder, who has been died or retired from service. The government may also reserve a certain designated residential accommodation for the purpose.
Any government department, office or public office holder aggrieved from the orders of the competent authority will have a right of appeal to be made to the Appellate Authority. In case of aggrieved from the decision or order of the Appellate Authority will appeal to the second Appellate Authority consisting of Minister for Law, a nominee of the Chief Minister and such other members. However, the Appellate Authority will not review its own decision.