Capital Development Authority’s land development puts HEC’s varsity plans at stake
ISLAMABAD: The Capital Development Authority’s eagerness to carve out and sell plots has put the Higher Education Commission (HEC) in trouble, as the civic agency is developing plots on land in the Kuri area already allocated to the HEC for two public sector universities. The issue of allotting alternate land to the HEC was supposed to be taken up at the CDA board meeting held on Monday, but…
Islamabad, October 13th, 2026 - The Capital Development Authority (CDA) has been developing plots on land allocated to the Higher Education Commission (HEC) for the establishment of two public sector universities in the Kuri area, causing trouble for the HEC. The CDA launched a housing scheme, Margalla Enclave, on around 18,000 kanals in the Kuri area, making the land they were allocated part of the scheme.
The HEC had purchased 250 acres at Kuri from the CDA in 2007 for the University of Engineering and Technology and the National University of Law and paid over Rs1 billion to the civic agency. HEC offered 25 acres in I-17 in lieu of the 250 acres purchased in Kuri. However, the CDA has now offered only 25 acres in sector I-17 instead of the 250 acres originally allocated.
The HEC has expressed disappointment and demands that the 250 acres in Kuri be handed over without delay, or alternatively, 250 kanals elsewhere. The CDA board was set to address this issue at their meeting on Monday but could not take it up, and it will likely be considered at the next meeting. The issue has been highlighted by the auditor general of Pakistan and the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), which also directed for its early resolution.
Written by urgent.news from Dawn - Pakistan's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
