Federal government to form Islamabad zoning commission

News sources said on December 19 that the federal government will tell a commission that it wants to change the Zoning Regulations of Zone-III in the Islamabad Capital Territory.

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Sources say that the decision was made at a meeting in the office of the Prime Minister on Friday, where senior government officials and CDA Chairman Mohammad Usman Younis were present. The commission will change the rules for Zone-III, which is not regulated by the CDA at the moment. The federal government will be in charge of the proposed commission, which will be made up of experts, including environmentalists, who will be in charge of making the changes.

It was also suggested that old villages in the Margalla Hills should be kept as they are and shouldn’t be changed any more. Villagers will have access to public services, and if they want to sell their land, the CDA will buy it to keep it from being developed. With the addition of a new sub-zone of 5, areas like Kot Hatyal and Bhara Kahu will be added to Zone-IV. The area along Murree Road near Rawal Dam Chowk will also be added to Zone-IV.

Zone-III, which is about 50,000 acres, is between the Margalla Hills national park and private land. About 20,000 of these 50,000 acres are privately owned, so the government agency has no power in this area.