Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, Feb 16: Jammu and Kashmir Housing Board that has mandate to develop urban areas and provide civic amenities to people has failed to fulfill its mandate and has become a construction company to earn fast bucks.
The Board came to existence in 1976, with the main objective to construct residential buildings for allotment to the public. The Board had to develop new colonies and provide better housing facilities to the people of the State and shelter to homeless on cheaper rates. It is also mandated to provide basic amenities, such as water taps, drainage, pathways, sanitary systems, streetlights.
The Board has shifted its focus from the mandate leading to mushrooming of private colonies in Srinagar, Jammu and other major towns. “These colonies have no parks, green spaces, play grounds, schools, medical facilities and even broader roads. They also lack fire management system and even fire tenders are not able to reach inside these colonies at the time of fires. The new urban centres in State are just like slums”, says Omar Ahmad, an Architect.
Sources said that there is a well organized nexus between officials of various Government departments and Housing Board for allotment of works to the Board through dubious means. “The Board at times allot works to contractors without floating tenders”, sources added.
The Board is constructing Hospitals, Nursing Colleges, Schools and Auditoriums across the State and has been granted contracts worth crores of rupees.
The Principal Secretary Higher Education, Asgar Samoon, in recently held meeting has expressed dis-satisfaction over the quality of work done by the Housing Board. Not satisfied with the work, he asked the Superintending Engineer Roads and Buildings to check the works done by the Board. He also asked the Board to produce a copy of the mandate for carrying out such works.
The mandate to carry such works is with Public Works Department and Jammu and Kashmir Project Construction Corporation (JKPCC) but the Board has become a major competitor to the JKPCC and PWD.
Through a Cabinet Decision (issued vide Govt. order No. 66-PW of 1988 dated 18-01-1988), all Government departments of State were ordered to allot all civil projects costing Rs 15.00 lakhs and above to Jammu and Kashmir Projects Construction Corporation (JKPCC). The order was later, however, modified to Rs. one crore and above (vide Govt. order No. 245-PW(R&B) of 2005 dated 07-07-2005) and thereafter it was modified to Rs. 7.00 crores and above (vide Cabinet Decision No. 25-05-2013 dated 18-02-2013 issued vide Govt. order No. 47-PW(R&B) of 2013 dated 19-02-2013).
As per the Act (No. VII of 1976 of J&K Housing Board dated 31-03-1976), the mandate of the Housing Board is to carry out such works required for housing accommodation purely residential. The Board by virtue of this Act enacted by J&K State Legislature has no authorization of the State Government to execute civil projects of any Government department.
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