LAHORE: The Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB) has launched a countrywide operation to retrieve its precious properties from land grabbers and those who failed to pay annual rent or fee.

The operation has been launched in association with the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), police, revenue and others departments concerned after the Supreme Court ofPakistan issued a direction to this effect in the light of the forensic audit that mentioned a number of properties that were under illegal occupation or in use ofrent defaulters.

In Lahore alone, various precious properties, including shops, have been retrieved recently from illegal occupants, while recovery was made from the tenants, including the three residing in as many ETPB-owned bungalows located in the Defence Housing Authority (DHA), Dawn has learnt.

`A couple of years ago, the apex court, in a case related to a temple in Karak district (KP), had ordered forensic audit of the ETPB properties, their possession, leasing, income, losses etc. During this audit, various paras mentioned several propertiesthat were either in illegal possession or their tenants were not paying the rent since long, thus occupying the properties unlawfully,` Muhammad Akram Joiya, ETPB Lahore Zone`s deputy administrator, told Dawn on Sunday.

He says that noticing a lack of cooperation by police and other agencies during such previous operations, Supreme Court ordered FIA to join the ETPB team to retrieve the properties and recover dues. Eventually, the ETPB launched a countrywide operation in allits zones in phases, he says, adding, `Presently Phase-1 is underway with the assistance of the FIA.

According to a report shared by the ETPB, a team led by FIA authorities carried out a major operation on Saturday, and retrieved various prop-erties worth total Rs615 million from defaulters. The team retrieved a piece of land measuring 92 Kanals and 13 Marlas, worth Rs120m at Mauza Pandoki (Raiwind tehsil). It took possession of another piece of land measuring 40 Kanals, worth Rs400m at Mauza Aasal Kundal (Raiwind tehsil).

The report also mentions two shops worth Rs15m at the Main Ferozepur Road, Kahna Nau (Lahore) and 65 Kanals and 6 Marlas worth Rs80m at Mauza Bableyana (Raiwind tehsil), that were retrieved during the joint operation.

On December 3, it says, eight precious shops worth Rs188m were retrieved from land grabbers. The shops were also retrieved in various other areas of Lahore, includingSheesha Moti Bazar, Mohni Road, Bradlaugh Hall, Gall Hingna, Ravi Road and Sutar Mandi.

On December 5, the team retrieved two properties worth about Rs76m from illegal occupants in the areas of DharmpuraandKamahanBahadarabad.

Similarly, it mentions recoveries amounting to about Rs70m made from the tenants living in three DHA, Lahore, bungalows.

`Since more such operations have been planned in Lahore and other major cities and towns, we would advise the illegal occupants and defaulters to either mend their ways or face the music,` Mr Joiya warned.

Meanwhile, the ETPB administration has alsointroduced an online system for the tenants to pay their duesfrom January 1, 2023.

`The tenants can now also pay their dues through mobile banking transactions. Moreover, the board has also signed an agreement with SUPARCO to digitise all properties,` ETPB Chairman Dr Habibur Rehman Gilani said in a statement.

Meanwhile, he says, an android application has also been developed to facilitate the Sikh and Hindu pilgrims visiting Pakistan, in locating all temples, properties, accommodations etc.

PR OPERATION: The Pakistan Railways, in a major operation on Sunday, retrieved its two-Kanal commercial land worth Rs60m from land grabbers near Sambrial station, Sialkot, according to a press release issued by the PR police.