Cantonment areas
CANTONMENT areas, as commonly understood, are prohibited areas where defence personnel live and public access is restricted. However, on a commercial basis, certain sectors of cantonment areas lying undeveloped at various locations of Karachi have been allowed for development by civilian use and occupancy as well.
All cantonment areas are kept exemplarily clean, hygienically green where people live a healthy life, with smooth roads, pedestrian walkways, gardens, playgrounds, regular supply of water, electricity, Sui gas and no garbage dumps around. With these living amenities and facilitations, the residents (defence personnel) are 100 per cent exempted from payment of all types of property, conservancy, water, sewerage and fire taxes.
But ever since the start of residency by civilians in cantonment areas, the provision of civic facilitations is discriminatory. Unfortunately, the major part of amount earned from tax payment by civilians is being spent on the services and maintenance of areas under use and occupation of defence personnel, while the actual tax-payers are being deprived of basic civic amenities in return, which is not fair.
Taking example of the Cantonment Board Faisal (CBF), Karachi, incidentally a few blocks other than block 18 in Gulistan-i-Jauhar are treated as cantonment areas wherein certain colonies are demarcated/restricted for living of defence personnel only. The remaining areas are most thickly populated by the civilians of various categories.
But the CBF levies on civilians only the ‘property and conservancy taxes’ when facilities in comparison to actual cantonment areas are miserably poor.
Streets, footpaths, main road, traffic islands and greenery are neither maintained nor any proper and regular conservancy is provided. The whole area is full of huge encroachments and full of beggars loitering all day in search of their prey. Is it justified to call such areas as cantonment areas?
The civilian areas claimed as ‘cantonment areas’ under the CBF need to be given to the city district government of Karachi for better services and maintenance of civic amenities to all residents without discrimination. Can someone enlighten on this anomalous condition?
For the sake of justice to common people, the Supreme Court of Pakistan may like to take suo motu action in the matter.
A TAX-PAYING CIVILIAN
Karachi