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01-05-2018, 09:27 AM
PESHAWAR: The Tourism Corporation Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (TCKP) has refuted a news item which alleged that land was illegally transferred at Malam Jabba in Swat for a tourism project.
Issuing a rejoinder, the TCKP said the news item is not only a complete deviation from the facts but also an effort to frighten investors away from the previously militancy-affected Swat district. ?It also is apparently a political point-scoring exercise in this election year,? it maintained.
The statement noted that the present Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government is proud to award the first ever mega tourism project of the province since the 18th Constitutional Amendment and Devolution to the highest bidders. It said a high-powered committee of seven provincial government departments was constituted to make the leasing process of rehabilitation, establishment and operationalisation of Malam Jabba Hotel, Ski/Chairlift Resort Project transparent.
?After due process, i.e. advertisement, EOIs, short listing of firms, evaluation of technical & financial bids, the project was awarded to the highest scoring bidder M/s SAMSONS Group of Companies, Lahore. And after obtaining formal approval from the competent authority, a lease agreement was signed by the Tourism Corporation-KP with the highest bidder in September, 2014,? it added.
The rejoinder said: ?The said land bearing 275 acres was previously with the federal government and a hotel and a chairlift existed at the site. Subsequently in 2007-08 militants destroyed the chairlift and hotel building. After 18th Amendment, land of Malam Jabba was transferred to KP-Tourism in June 2013. Tourism Corporation Khyber Pakhtunkhwa & KP-BOIT advertised this land for setting up Hotel & Chairlift & Ski Resort in March, 2014.?
?The lease agreement was signed in September, 2014. Difference of opinion arose between the Forest Department and the lessee as to the meaning of access rights. (Who has access and for what purpose and under what conditions as the said 257 acres land was notified forest land). Tourism Department contention was that the said land belonged to MJRL and was transferred to it from the Federal Government under the 18th Amendment and therefore it had the right to advertise it for the same purpose as was the case with MJRL).?
The statement recalled that the lessee went to the Peshawar High Court by filing a writ petition.
It said that to ensure that the project is not stalled as it was expected to be a major contribution to economy of the militancy affected area, it was agreed in a meeting chaired by the chief minister on April 27, 2016 that to avoid confusion the term access rights mentioned in the agreement would be elaborated to mean that the 257-plus acre land would be available only for roaming facility to visitors, for sightseeing and enjoying eco-friendly tourism. It was decided that the hotel and ski lift would be made on 12 acres (the same area where the previous hotel and ski existed before being destroyed by the militants). It was also agreed that simultaneously the lessee would withdraw the court case.
According to the rejoinder, ?the remaining area of 257 acres, one kanal and five marlas is not to be denotified by the Forest Department. It will continue to be owned by the government through Forest Department and remain under the ambit of the Forest Act. To clear any ambiguity on this count once and for all the addendum to the agreement specifies that this land is to be used by tourists visiting the ski facility/area only for walking, sight-seeing/enjoying eco-friendly tourism.? It added that this would be incorporated in the addendum agreement and summary for the purpose has been submitted. It explained that the ski facility is already functional with tourists thronging the site and the hotel component is nearing completion.
?A site visit to Malam Jabba will confirm that the construction and ski lift is in the same area (12 acres) as before. The remaining 257 acres land will remain under the ambit of the Forests Act and to be used only for roaming and sight-seeing by the tourists,? the statement said.
Arshad Aziz Malik adds: The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Tourism Corporation has tried to conceal facts in its clarification. It is clearly mentioned in sub-clause A of clause 16 of the lease agreement that the provincial government would give 275-acre land to Samson Group of Companies Lahore for 33 years. Also, the lease period is extendable by further 20 years.
Copies of the agreement, written on the stamp papers, are available with the reporter, which had been registered with the Swat sub-registrar office. On the basis of the same agreement, the Samson Company had filed a writ petition in the Peshawar High Court to seek possession of 275 acres of land.
The Tourism Department has admitted that a meeting was chaired by KP Chief Minister Pervaiz Khattak, and it was decided that hotel would be constructed on five acres and chairlift on 12 acres. In that meeting, the company had agreed that it would take back its petition from the court. And that was why that the Tourism Department sent a summary to Chief Minister Pervaiz Khattak for an amendment to the agreement. If there was no problem in the lease agreement, then why an amendment was being made to it?
The Tourism Corporation has termed the scandal a political point scoring in the election year, though reporters perform their responsibilities according to the journalistic norms and they have nothing to do with politics.
The Tourism Department gave no clarification that why the Samson Company deposited bidding amount of Rs12 million on May 15, 2014, after a lapse of 35 days. Earlier, it had deposited only Rs6 million bidding amount on the given date of April 8, 2014.
A Forest Department official said on condition of anonymity that the department had strictly opposed giving the company access to 257 acres of land and also submitted a reply in the Peshawar High Court in this regard. Experts believe that giving the company access to this vast land would adversely affect that forests and forest life. On the one hand, the government is running a campaign to plant more and more trees, and on the other giving access to such areas where forests and trees could be damaged by the move.The Forest official said that Malam Jabba forests were not given to the department under the 18th Amendment, but under the dissolution of the One-Unit arrangement in 1970. A commission had also declared this area of Malam Jabba the protected lands of Forest Department. Giving any company access to forests would be like handing over the forests area to that company.
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Issuing a rejoinder, the TCKP said the news item is not only a complete deviation from the facts but also an effort to frighten investors away from the previously militancy-affected Swat district. ?It also is apparently a political point-scoring exercise in this election year,? it maintained.
The statement noted that the present Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government is proud to award the first ever mega tourism project of the province since the 18th Constitutional Amendment and Devolution to the highest bidders. It said a high-powered committee of seven provincial government departments was constituted to make the leasing process of rehabilitation, establishment and operationalisation of Malam Jabba Hotel, Ski/Chairlift Resort Project transparent.
?After due process, i.e. advertisement, EOIs, short listing of firms, evaluation of technical & financial bids, the project was awarded to the highest scoring bidder M/s SAMSONS Group of Companies, Lahore. And after obtaining formal approval from the competent authority, a lease agreement was signed by the Tourism Corporation-KP with the highest bidder in September, 2014,? it added.
The rejoinder said: ?The said land bearing 275 acres was previously with the federal government and a hotel and a chairlift existed at the site. Subsequently in 2007-08 militants destroyed the chairlift and hotel building. After 18th Amendment, land of Malam Jabba was transferred to KP-Tourism in June 2013. Tourism Corporation Khyber Pakhtunkhwa & KP-BOIT advertised this land for setting up Hotel & Chairlift & Ski Resort in March, 2014.?
?The lease agreement was signed in September, 2014. Difference of opinion arose between the Forest Department and the lessee as to the meaning of access rights. (Who has access and for what purpose and under what conditions as the said 257 acres land was notified forest land). Tourism Department contention was that the said land belonged to MJRL and was transferred to it from the Federal Government under the 18th Amendment and therefore it had the right to advertise it for the same purpose as was the case with MJRL).?
The statement recalled that the lessee went to the Peshawar High Court by filing a writ petition.
It said that to ensure that the project is not stalled as it was expected to be a major contribution to economy of the militancy affected area, it was agreed in a meeting chaired by the chief minister on April 27, 2016 that to avoid confusion the term access rights mentioned in the agreement would be elaborated to mean that the 257-plus acre land would be available only for roaming facility to visitors, for sightseeing and enjoying eco-friendly tourism. It was decided that the hotel and ski lift would be made on 12 acres (the same area where the previous hotel and ski existed before being destroyed by the militants). It was also agreed that simultaneously the lessee would withdraw the court case.
According to the rejoinder, ?the remaining area of 257 acres, one kanal and five marlas is not to be denotified by the Forest Department. It will continue to be owned by the government through Forest Department and remain under the ambit of the Forest Act. To clear any ambiguity on this count once and for all the addendum to the agreement specifies that this land is to be used by tourists visiting the ski facility/area only for walking, sight-seeing/enjoying eco-friendly tourism.? It added that this would be incorporated in the addendum agreement and summary for the purpose has been submitted. It explained that the ski facility is already functional with tourists thronging the site and the hotel component is nearing completion.
?A site visit to Malam Jabba will confirm that the construction and ski lift is in the same area (12 acres) as before. The remaining 257 acres land will remain under the ambit of the Forests Act and to be used only for roaming and sight-seeing by the tourists,? the statement said.
Arshad Aziz Malik adds: The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Tourism Corporation has tried to conceal facts in its clarification. It is clearly mentioned in sub-clause A of clause 16 of the lease agreement that the provincial government would give 275-acre land to Samson Group of Companies Lahore for 33 years. Also, the lease period is extendable by further 20 years.
Copies of the agreement, written on the stamp papers, are available with the reporter, which had been registered with the Swat sub-registrar office. On the basis of the same agreement, the Samson Company had filed a writ petition in the Peshawar High Court to seek possession of 275 acres of land.
The Tourism Department has admitted that a meeting was chaired by KP Chief Minister Pervaiz Khattak, and it was decided that hotel would be constructed on five acres and chairlift on 12 acres. In that meeting, the company had agreed that it would take back its petition from the court. And that was why that the Tourism Department sent a summary to Chief Minister Pervaiz Khattak for an amendment to the agreement. If there was no problem in the lease agreement, then why an amendment was being made to it?
The Tourism Corporation has termed the scandal a political point scoring in the election year, though reporters perform their responsibilities according to the journalistic norms and they have nothing to do with politics.
The Tourism Department gave no clarification that why the Samson Company deposited bidding amount of Rs12 million on May 15, 2014, after a lapse of 35 days. Earlier, it had deposited only Rs6 million bidding amount on the given date of April 8, 2014.
A Forest Department official said on condition of anonymity that the department had strictly opposed giving the company access to 257 acres of land and also submitted a reply in the Peshawar High Court in this regard. Experts believe that giving the company access to this vast land would adversely affect that forests and forest life. On the one hand, the government is running a campaign to plant more and more trees, and on the other giving access to such areas where forests and trees could be damaged by the move.The Forest official said that Malam Jabba forests were not given to the department under the 18th Amendment, but under the dissolution of the One-Unit arrangement in 1970. A commission had also declared this area of Malam Jabba the protected lands of Forest Department. Giving any company access to forests would be like handing over the forests area to that company.
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