PIDA to develop islands, reclaimable coastal areas

ISLAMABAD: A presidential ordinance was promulgated on August 31 to establish the Pakistan Islands Development Authority (PIDA) but the move remained largely unnoticed and unreported. It was neither made public nor was it tabled in the National Assembly or Senate by the government. The organisation will develop and manage the islands in the internal and territorial waters of Pakistan.

The authority is being created to “initiate and maintain a continuous process of reclamation and urban planning and identify immovable properties and projects suitable for the development of schemes within the internal and territorial waters of Pakistan.” The Bundal and Buddo islands, on the Arabian Sea and off the coast of Karachi, will be the initial focus of the authority.

As news of the Ordinance began to spread, there was outrage among certain sections in Sindh. On Saturday, a seminar addressed by representatives of political parties, including the ruling PPP, and civil society groups strongly criticized the move as impinging on provincial autonomy. Many prominent lawyers in Sindh dubbed the move unconstitutional and vowed to challenge it. Environmentalists came out strongly on social media alleging that developing the islands would add to environmental degradation and damage fisheries and the mangroves. The Sindhi nationalist party, the Awami Tehreek, took out a protest rally in Karachi on Sunday against the Ordinance.

The reaction should have been anticipated given that the powers of the new authority are extensive and far-reaching. The PIDA has been given wide-ranging functions and exemptions from litigation in any court about the legality of anything done or any action taken by it.

The authority will “identify immovable properties and projects suitable for the development of schemes within them; recommend to the federal or relevant provincial government policies, laws and actions to be applied to the specified areas to enhance the international competitiveness of industry, tourism and commerce in specified areas and propose to the government incentives in relation to taxes, customs and excise duties and other fiscal incentives applicable to investors in the specified areas.”

The PIDA “will promote and stimulate the specified areas as trade, investment and logistics centres and hubs, duty free areas and international tourist destinations in line with the directions of the patron (the prime minister); recommend to the government to provide or procure immovable property or a project through any means permissible under law including compulsory acquisition, purchase, lease or license through private agreement, donation by any private party or any state land or project by any government or other public authority on such terms as may be mutually agreed between the government and the relevant transferor or provider.”

The authority, if necessary, will prepare and approve a master or site plan of a specified area containing zoning, spatial or town planning, infrastructure development, land use and building control regulations in consonance with the planning under the applicable building and town-planning dispensation; prescribe criteria and procedure for registration, membership, possession, transfer and cancellation of immovable property in a scheme; develop procedures for allocation, allotment, lease or auction, if any, of any type of immovable property, including the procedure to transact or exchange the actual property or allotment or allocation file.

The PIDA will maintain an updated record of immovable property including title, leasehold rights, mortgage, easement, licence, tenancy and possession and collect all levies, taxes, duties, fees and charges on the transfer or possession of an immovable property, or any encumbrance thereon, under any law after agreeing on an arrangement with the relevant agency.

“The authority may raise funds through any means considered appropriate in the circumstances including through real estate investment trusts, bonds, sukuk and other forms of finances obtained on the basis of participation term certificate, musharika certificates, term finance certificates or any other financial or debt instruments or securities; may raise funds and obtain finance or loans from donor agencies, government bodies, and financial institutions, including on the security of its Fund or any portion; and may plan, approve and execute mergers and amalgamation with other housing schemes or cooperative housing societies subject to the approval of the competent authorities of those housing schemes or housing societies for such merger or amalgamation.”

The PIDA will prepare or cause to be prepared feasibility studies for the development of a scheme or schemes and determine the mode of development accordingly.

The Ordinance states that notwithstanding anything contained in the PPRA ordinance, rules and regulations or similar laws, the authority may, by regulations, prescribe the manner, methods and procedures for undertaking procurements and such prescribed conditions shall exclusively govern its procurements.

According to the ordinance, ‘scheme’ means a scheme or schemes, plan, facility or project, on profit or non-profit basis, comprising development or re-development, in the specified areas of new or existing islands or reclaimable coastal areas forming part of the sovereign territory of Pakistan or mix-use, housing, commercial or public amenity plots, buildings or units and related infrastructure or infrastructure and services including transportation systems, road networks, traffic management systems, healthcare facilities, educational facilities, recreational and cultural facilities, municipal and civic facilities and services, communications systems and facilities, utilities infrastructure and network including water supply, drainage, sewerage, sanitation or energy generation, procurement, transportation, transmission and distribution systems including for electric power through any energy sources and gas (LNG, RLNG, LPG etc.) or industrial estates and parks, technology parks; and all facilities, systems and works incidental or ancillary thereto, planned, made, undertaken or supervised or approved by the PIDA under this ordinance.

Specified areas means islands, within the internal waters and territorial waters listed in the First Schedule [Bundal and Buddo islands].

Crucially, the specified areas “shall vest in the federal government and the PIDA will, for and on behalf of the federal government, possess, control, manage and deal with them under the PIDA ordinance. It will be a body corporate, having perpetual succession and a common seat, with power, subject to the provisions of the ordinance, to acquire and hold property, both movable and immovable and shall sue and be sued in this name.”

An Authority Fund which shall be formed, administered and controlled by the PIDA will be created. For a period of ten years, the PIDA will be exempt from payment of tax on its income, profits and gains. The authority will collect property tax charges of properties situated within specified areas. It may retain, or may lease, sell, exchange, rent or otherwise dispose of any land vested in it.

No court or other authority shall have jurisdiction to question the legality of anything done or any action taken under the PIDA ordinance by or at the instance of the authority.

The prime minister will be the patron of the PIDA, who will review its performance and may, from time to time, give to it general policy directions to implement the same, subject to the terms of this ordinance.

There will be a chairman of the authority and not less than five and not more than 11 members who will be nominated by the patron. There will also be a policy board.

Among other qualifications, a person to be appointed as the PIDA chairman may be a serving or retired officer of the government in grade 22 or equivalent or a retired officer of the armed forces not below the rank of lieutenant general or equivalent. The serving officers from the bureaucracy or armed forces will be eligible on deputation or secondment basis as per applicable laws and rules.

The chairman shall not be more than 62 years of age on the date of appointment. But if he is reappointed, the age limit will not apply. An evaluation committee comprising at least one minister and at least two secretaries of the government will recommend three nominees for chairman for a four-year term. Till the appointment of a permanent chairman, an acting chief will be named.

According to the ordinance, internal waters means the internal waters of Pakistan determined in accordance with the Territorial Waters and Maritime Zones Act, 1976.

Except where any powers and functions are specified in this ordinance to be exercised or performed by the government or policy board, all the powers and discretion of the PIDA will be exercised and its functions and duties will be performed by its chairman.