PM directs provinces to expedite legislation to stop land-use changes

Prime Minister Imran Khan has directed all the provinces to expedite legislation for stopping land-use changes.

The PM said this while chairing a meeting of the National Coordination Committee (NCC) on Housing, Construction and Development to review the progress made on existing and new projects, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said in a statement on Thursday.

During the briefing by Surveyor General of Pakistan Major General Shahid Pervez, the PM remarked that cadastral mapping would help in the development of an authentic land record database.

"It would help in clearly identifying demarcation of land and thereby eliminate illegal encroachments. Moreover, the authentic database would also contribute towards enhancing revenues received from lands," the PMO quoted the premier as saying.

The PM further said that land-use changes need to be checked where green vegetation areas are being converted to urban projects and advised all the provincial and AJ&K governments to expedite legislation to put a stop to land-use changes.

PM highlights importance of digitalised mapping

He continued that the protection of green spaces and agricultural lands is essential for environmental considerations and to safeguard food security. However, construction projects would be allowed under regulations.

The PM stressed that cadastral mapping is important for eliminating encroachments and enhancing land revenues. He was informed that under Phase-1 of the mapping exercise, 90 % digitisation of state land has been completed in Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (96%) and Balochistan (50%).

The CDA chairman also informed the PM that with the help of cadastral maps, the civic authority has started imposition of fines on encroachers and the amount collected is being used for compensation of general masses who were defrauded by illegal housing societies.