LAHORE: On the orders of Ombudsman, Punjab, Azam Suleman Khan, payment of a cumulative remuneration of over Rs150 has been started to 506 owners as the price of their 300-kanal land acquired by District Collector Sheikhupura for the construction of the Lahore-Karachi Motorway Interchange at Mauza Faizpur Khurd, Dhudian and Sagian Par Kalan, said a spokesman for the office of the ombudsman in a statement issued on Sunday.
This momentous development marks the resolution of the prolonged predicament faced by these landowners, who have been awaiting compensation for their acquired portions of land since 2016, the spokesman maintained. While giving details, the spokesman added that Mian Riazuddin and Mansoor Ali of Lahore stated in their applications, submitted to the ombudsman office, that payments for their acquired lands have not been made by the government.
According to their applications, they not only sought the rightful payments based on the Deputy Commissioner’s (DC) rate but also demanded additional compensation for the utilisation of their acquired lands since 2016. During the proceedings, it came out that, in addition to the issue of double registration of Khasra numbers, there were some delays in the land acquisition process. Consequently, the ombudsman office has promptly informed the Board of Revenue (BOR) that, prima facie, there was a lack of oversight in monitoring the performance of land acquisition collectors, after their attachments with provincial government departments.
As a result, substantial funds deposited in the land acquisition collectors’ accounts, by the government, remain unused, causing delays in compensating the affected individuals. Therefore, an institutionalised system should be devised by the BOR for monitoring the land acquisition collectors’ performance, and ensuring timely payments to the owners of acquired lands, the spokesman added.
Thanks to the continued efforts and liaison with the offices of commissioner Lahore and deputy commissioner Sheikhupura, the district price assessment committee Sheikhupura has settled the compensation price of the acquired lands and payments to the landowners have started by the office of the assistant commissioner/land acquisition collector Ferozewala, the spokesman said.
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