Staff Reporter
Chairman Capital Development Authority (CDA) Amir Ali Ahmed along with Member Planning CDA Dr. Shahid Mehmood and DG ICT Syeda Shafaq Hashmi visited Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) on Thursday for an interaction with the business community.
President ICCI Sardar Yasir Ilyas Khan gave a detailed presentation to the Chairman CDA on the key issues of the business community. He said that the sitting President ICCI should be made a Board member of CDA to give representation to the voice of business community in the policy making of CDA.
Sardar Yasir Ilyas said CDA in consultation with ICCI should establish a new industrial estate at an area of minimum 2000-acre land in Islamabad as the current industrial estates have saturated and potential investors were moving to other places. He said CDA should allow 2 or more bifurcations of adjacent industrial plots and sell additional land adjacent to industrial plots on last auction rates. He said that CDA should provide free of cost plot for dispensary and mosque in industrial area. He said CDA should defer the receipt of property tax, reduce its rate and allow its payment in easy installments.
The ICCI President said CDA should streamline completion certificates and building plans approval regimes to facilitate the business community. He said CDA in cooperation with ICCI should construct an expo centre in Islamabad. He said that CDA should allocate plots in markets for parking plazas or arrange parking in markets on BOT basis. He said that ICCI has planned to organize shopping festival and winter festival in Islamabad and CDA should cooperate in making these festivals successful. Speaking at the occasion, Chairman CDA Amir Ali Ahmed said that the civic body was going to launch a mobile application to address the issues and complaints of the business community and the citizens in 72 hours from the time of registration of complaint. He said that CDA in consultation with ICCI would allocate land for the establishment of a new industrial estate in Islamabad along the ring road on Rawat-Sihala belt.
The CDA Chairman said that President ICCI would be invited to CDA Board meetings to get the input of the private sector and recommendation would be sent to the government to make him a member of CDA Board. He said that CDA has now earmarked over 60 percent of its budget for the development works and many development projects including carpeting of main & street roads, improving sewerage & drainage system and restoring streetlights would be started soon. He said that out of 40,000 total street lights in Islamabad, CDA has made 10 percent streetlights functional while the 90 percent would be made functional in less than two months.
