High-rise buildings in Sukkur: ABAD chief lauds lifting of moratorium on construction

KARACHI: Chairman Association of Builders and Developers of Pakistan (ABAD) Fayyaz Ilyas has highly appreciated Chief Secretary Sindh Mumtaz Ali Shah for lifting a moratorium on construction of high-rise buildings in Sukkur City, which was imposed since the last five years without any justifiable reason.

He said that this right step of the Chief Secretary will not only boost construction activities in Sukkur Division but also provide job opportunities to thousands of skilled and unskilled workers and also boost economic activities.

The chief secretary, during a meeting with ABAD delegation and concerned government officials on 24th March 2021, had ordered Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA) to lift moratorium on construction of high-rise buildings in Sukkur. The SBCA has issued a notification on Friday lifting a five-year long moratorium.

In a statement, Chairman ABAD said that builders were demanding lifting moratorium on construction of high-rise buildings in Sukkur Division because a number of builders had invested large sums in various projects. He said that unjustified ban on construction of high-rise buildings in Sukkur Division for a long five years was sending negative signals to local as well as international investors. He said that ban was impacting on Sukkur as well as national economy, which is already striving to come out of ICU.

He said that construction of high-rise buildings in Karachi and Hyderabad should also be encouraged just like Sukkur and other parts of the country for the sake of the national economy.

Chairman ABAD said that the country is facing a shortage of 12 million houses and according to a report of the World Bank demand of 0.7 million houses is created every year in line with increasing population of Pakistan. Prices of housing units and rent of houses are increasing due to shortage of houses in Pakistan, he said adding that lower middle class is specially affected by rising house rents. He said that the price of housing units will come down by 20 to 25 percent due to lifting of moratorium on construction of high-rise buildings and more than 70 allied industries will get a boost, which ultimately will have a positive effect on the national economy.—PR

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021