ISLAMABAD: The under-construction parking plaza in Blue Area after having missed multiple deadlines is likely to miss another deadline of June 2024, with the Capital Development Authority “making efforts” to finish the crucial project by the end of this fiscal year.

The Rs1.3 billion project was started in March 2022 and it was supposed to be completed in March 2023, but subsequently, its deadline was extended to September 30, which also lapsed without much progress. Now, with another extended deadline, the project is expected to be completed by June 30.

This plaza is one of the six parking lots, planned by the CDA some years ago, but its construction faced an inordinate delay due to several reasons. On the other hand, tenders of five other proposed parking plazas – one each in I-8 Markaz and F-8, two in F-10, and one in G-9 Markaz have not been floated as of yet.

CDA officials told Dawn that the project would not be completed even in June because at least three floors of the eight-storey building have not even been started. “In this deadline, if the grey structure is completed even that would be considered a great success since the contractor has yet to construct at least three floors of the plaza,” they said, adding that it was highly unlikely to finalise the project with 45 days remaining in the deadline.

CDA chief wants it complete by June, says won’t allow further delay; officials say almost impossible to meet deadline

CDA Chairman Muhammad Ali Randhawa, however, said that “no further delay will be tolerated” in its completion. During his visit to the site of the said plaza, the new CDA chief claimed that the deadline would not be further extended.

A statement issued by the CDA quoted the chairman as saying that this project should be completed as soon as possible to address the parking problem in the commercial hub of the federal capital.

He was briefed by officials of the engineering wing who claimed that the “workforce has been doubled” to ensure the timely completion of the project. The chairman directed them to increase the workforce and issued instructions that there should be no compromise on quality with a special focus on the finishing work, including tiles and marble.

The plaza when constructed will have a basement plus ground floor and six storeys. It will accommodate 900 cars and 150 motorcycles. The CDA officials claimed that the plaza missed deadlines because of the “crossing of a big nullah through the project site forcing the contractor to fix the issue of slush and running water which took months”.

Poor by-laws implementation

It is relevant to note here that parking has become one of the major issues in Islamabad over the years as available parking spaces are shrinking due to an increase in the city’s population. The CDA officials told Dawn that besides a massive increase in the number of vehicles during the last two decades, the poor implementation of by-laws and ill-planning also contributed to this mess.

They said parking spaces had been designed in the city’s markets and plazas in accordance with the number of shops, but with the passage of time, the shop owners violated the layout and increased the number of shops. Similarly, the commercial buildings in marakiz should have adequate parking space in basements, but no focus was paid to this aspect either.

“I-8 Markaz is a glaring example of the poor implementation of by-laws or poor planning, as people face traffic mess on a daily basis in this markaz,” said an official.

Moreover, the number of shops has also increased in all the “class-three shopping centres” (neighbourhood markets). Initially, these centres had nine shops (units), but the business community increased the number of shops by converting one unit into nine mini shops, putting extra strain on the available parking spaces as well as other services.

Published in Dawn, May 17th, 2024