Imran Khan Orders Officials to ‘Simplify’ the Construction Process
PID courtesy
Pakistan’s prime minister directs the head of the provincial secretary to submit an action plan for the online system next week
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Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday directed the relevant authorities to utilize information technology to accelerate and simplify the system of getting approval for construction activities in Pakistan, saying this would support the government’s incentive package for the sector and boost the economy.
Chairing the meeting of the National Coordinating Committee for Housing, Construction, and Development in Islamabad, he said the government package would help low-income residents build their own homes.
He directed all provincial chief secretaries to submit action plans next week to introduce an online system to all activities related to the construction sector, including one-window operations to secure government permits and pay fees. He also directed the Finance Division and the State Bank of Pakistan to simplify and accelerate the process of providing subsidies for the construction of affordable homes for low-income people, as well as to promote mortgage facilities by banks.
The prime minister said measures approved by the government, such as removing certificate requirements without objection to construction, must be implemented quickly and warned that officials who showed negligence or made unnecessary obstacles would be handled strictly.
In addition to the prime minister, Information Minister Shibli Faraz; special assistant to Prime Minister Malik Amin Aslam, Lt. Gen. (ret) Asim Saleem Bajwa and Shahbaz Gill; Chairman of Pakistan’s Naya Housing and Development Authority Lt. Gen. (ret) Anwar Ali Haider; Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan Reza Baqir; the federal housing secretary, and the chief secretary of Punjab, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan, Balochistan, and Sindh; additional chief secretary from Pakistan-run Kashmir; and the president of the National Bank and Bank Khyber also participated in the meeting.
The Chair of the Lahore Development Authority notified the meeting about the progress of the LDA City project under the Pakistan Naya Housing Program, while the chief secretary of Sindh said that taxes had been reduced in the province to equalize it with Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.