By IANS,
Islamabad : Pakistan is short of 7.6 million houses. But ít is only partly addressing the problem by seeking Rs.10 million to build one million houses for low-income government employees and others.
Housing and Works Minister Rehmatullah Kakar said he had sought Rs.10 million for fiscal 2008-09 for building one million houses for government employees and poor people.
“Housing schemes will be initiated in separate phases. Some projects will be government-funded and others will be joint ventures of developers, bankers and the ministry,” Dawn newspaper Friday quoted him as saying.
Housing Secretary Samiul Haq Khilji said the shortfall in dwelling units would be addressed through a number of projects to be launched under the Prime Minister’s Housing Programme.
Without giving any numbers, he said these houses would be provided on easy instalments.
According to Sher Afzal, estate officer of Islamabad’s Capital Development Authority, hundreds of former government employees continue to illegally occupy government houses.
These employees had either retired, gone abroad or died, but they or their families were not ready to vacate the government accommodation, he added.
“A plan (is ready) to end such illegal occupation. The former employees and their families have not been paying any rent, causing an annual loss of millions of rupees to the exchequer,” Afzal said.