Unplanned use of agri land has to be regularised: minister

LAHORE: Punjab Local Government Minister Zeeshan Rafiq has said that unplanned commercial use of agricultural lands near towns has to be regularised as schemes launched without master plans not only create administrative but also environmental problems.

“We will introduce a new legislation for transparency in commercial schemes,” he said while chairing a meeting of the special committee formed to review the regularisation of commercial use of agricultural lands on Monday. Punjab Agriculture Minister Syed Ashiq Hussain Kirmani, senior member Board of Revenue Nabeel Javed, Punjab Local Government Secretary Shakeel Ahmed Mian, representatives from the real estate sector and concerned officers attended the meeting.

On the occasion, proposals to regularise the commercial use of agricultural lands in Punjab and the establishment of a provincial authority for approving the land master plan of housing schemes were considered.

While addressing the meeting, the minister said that complexity could arise if different government departments were doing the same job; in this context, it was necessary to establish authority at the provincial level so that all facilities could be provided to citizens and developers from a single platform. He added that new housing projects were necessary with the increase in population; however, it was also equally important to prevent the establishment of illegal schemes.

On the occasion, the Punjab Agriculture Minister said that establishing the authority at the provincial level would bring transparency in certain matters. “Regularisation by the Punjab government would also increase public confidence in the real estate sector.

The representatives of the real estate sector praised the initiative of the Punjab government and said that the government well addressed their concerns. “We would provide all possible support for the success of this people-friendly initiative of Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif,” they assured.

The Senior Member Board of Revenue briefed the meeting on the procedure of property transfer.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024