ISLAMABAD: The mega apartment project of the Federal Government Employees Housing Authority (FGEHA) is stalled since 2021 creating unrest and anxiety among hundreds of allottees.

The construction on the `Lifestyle EHFPRO` project was started in 2017 with the completion date of July 2020.

FGEHA singed an initial agreement in 2010; however, the authority through public-private partnership re-launched the project in 2017 on over 15 acres in G-13 and G-14.

As per the initial plan, 3273 apartments were to be constructed for government employees and private sectors.

At the site, gray structure of apartments is constructed while the tower where the commercial area was to be developed could not move from the basearea.

`I bought an apartment in the project and was expecting its completion somewhere in 2020 during my service. I invested my hard-earned money and last year I retired from my service after reaching the age of superannuation.

`I have been desperately visiting the office of FGEHA to know about the project but being told to wait,` said a retired government officer.

He requested Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Housing Minister Riaz Hussain Pirzada to take notice of the situation and order action against all those responsible for the delay.

Sources in FGEHA told Dawn that recently the executive board of the FGEHA gave the go-ahead to the authority for terminating the contract with the JV partners and come up with an `alternate proposal for timely and successful completion of the project at the earliest.

The board also directed for formal audit of the project to ascertain losses and damages caused to FGEHA and its members by JV partners.

The board also directed the FGE H A for possession of the project along with securing the record etc.

The sources said following thedirective, the FGEHA with the support of the local administration took over possession of the project from the JV partners last weekend.

`Yes, on last Saturday, we took over possession of the project.

We are moving forwards in accordance with the directive of the executive board,` said an officer of FGEHA.

According to FGEHA`s documents, construction work was officially started in September 2017 with an expected completion timeline set for the first quarter of 2020.

However, `the project remains stalled since 2021 and work is still incomplete,` read the documents.

When contacted, a senior officer of FGEHA said the authority was cognisant of the problems being faced by allottees due to delay in the project.

`We have taken possession of the project and now working on viable solution. We are working to resolve issues related to the project to complete it as soon as possible,` he said.

It may be noted that several other projects of FGEHA, including Kashmir Apartments AND Bhara Kahu housing scheme, have been facing AN inordinate delay in completion.