Senior Minister, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Bashir Ahmad Bilour on Wednesday told the provincial assembly that large number of cases hampering the evacuation of the Town Municipal Administration (TMA) properties from old lease holders.
The provincial legislature resumed proceedings after remaining adjourned for one day due to the death anniversary of the Shaheed Hayat Mohammad Khan Sherpao, former Governor Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Speaker, Kiramatullah Khan presided over proceedings of the house.
The senior minister, who holds the portfolio of local bodies and rural development, stated this in response to a question of Sardar Shamoon Yar Khan of PML-N regarding leasing of the properties of TMA Abbottabad to different people. He pleaded the chair for referring the matter to the concerned standing committee of house.
Abdul Akbar Khan of PPP said that the matter is not limited to only Abbottabad, all districts have the same problem. He said that a 31,077 square feet has been leased out on annual rent of Rs 900, which is sheer injustice. He suggested the government for introducing amendments in the existing leasing act of the province.
Answering the questions, Senior Minister Bashir Ahmad Bilour said that majority of the leases are several decades old saying that a procedure has been adopted for new leases and the official rate is Rs 100 per feet. However, he said that existing lease have been offered 30 discount in the rent to avoid litigation process. The speaker, Kiramatullah Khan, said that the Provincial Minister for Law should write a letter to the High Court on behalf of the provincial government.
The Provincial Minister for Law, Arshad Abdullah assured the house that the department will consider bringing amendments in the existing act and will also take up the matter with the Chief Justice, Peshawar High Court. The chair directed him for taking early measures in this regard.
About incomplete water filtration plants project in the province, Senior Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Bashir Ahmad Bilour has said that the provincial government had declined to accept the responsibility of the incomplete and corruption strained water filtration scheme in the province.
Federal government, he said had sanctioned an amount of Rs 2.1 billion for the scheme. The department of local bodies, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had received Rs 738.56 million, out of which an amount of Rs 632.308 million has already been utilised. Senior Minister Bashir Ahmad Bilour told the house that the matter is relating to irregularities involving billions of rupees. The contractor has deposited guarantee and the federal government have also released. The provincial government, he said was responsible for the implementation of the scheme.
Comments
Comments are closed for this article.