ISLAMABAD: The `one-window operation` centre of the Capital Development Authority (CDA) has failed to provide relief to the consumers, an official of the civic body acknowledged during a briefing to a National Assembly sub-committee on Monday.

The sub-committee of the National Assembly standing committee on cabinet secretariat was informed that the objective of the one-window operation was to facilitate the CDA clients and save them from shuttling from one office to another in the authority`s head office.

`But the `one window` centre has become a facilitation desk simply guiding the residents about various offices in the CDA headquarters,` said Amer Ali Ahmed, the CDA member administration and estate.

The head of the sub-committee, Dr Tariq Fazal Chaudhry, narrated the accounts of some plot holders who suffered due to red-tape in the civic agency.

`This is quite unfortunate that people come to us complaining that files of their plots are stuck in the CDA,` he said. `And a majority of such cases belong to the elderly residents who want to transfer their property to their next generation.

However, the member administration and estate acknowledged that `conceptual` changes were needed in the authority.

`We have decided to dismantle the one-window operation and introduce a user-friendly system,` Mr All said. `The CDA is establishing facilitation centres in different parts of the city, so that the residents would not have to come to the head office.

The committee was informed that one such facilitation centre had already been established at the G-7 sector and other utility services would set up their field offices there too.

One of the committee members said such a move would also help reduce corruption in the CDA.

`But what will they do when there is no interaction with the general public,` Malik Abrar Ahmed, MNA from Rawalpindi, added.

The committee was informed about the development initiatives in the city, including the pace of work on Park Enclave, and new sectors.

When the MNAs asked about the lack of development activities in the rural parts of Islamabad, they were informed that the rural areas came under the jurisdiction of the capital territory administration.

`There is a wide gap between development works in rural and urban Islamabad and we understand that the ICT administration is not a development agency,` said Dr Tariq Fazal.

It was decided that the committee would hold a meeting with the ICT administration for the transfer of the development functions in the rural areas to the CDA.