Bara Kahu Bypass Project Undermines Sanctitude of Pak’s Only National University

Shazia Mehboob
Islamabad: The Bara-Kahu Bypass project violates the sanctity of the country’s only national university, splits the campus into two non-communicating parts, isolates the front of the university from the rest of the main campus, and harms the area’s natural environment, as well as destroys the tranquil academic and research environment by sowing the seeds of discord and unrest.
Joint Action Committee Quaid-I-Azam University (QAU) has released fact sheet on important issues pertaining to QAU land and ongoing Bara Kahu bypass.
The Joint Action Committee (JAC) is comprised of relevant stakeholders i.e. Academic Staff Association, Officers Welfare Association, QAU Alumni Association, Employees Welfare Association.
According to the Fact Sheet, the Bara-Kahu Bypass project has significant effects on the university. It divides the campus into two non-contagious barricaded sections, isolates the front of the university from the rest of the main campus, and makes it less likely that the university will have a dedicated road access (from Murree-road).
Moreover, it harms the area’s natural environment, including the university’s exceptionally valued Botanical Garden, and it contradicts the university’s master plan, which includes areas set aside for National Research Centers.
The project consumes about 600 kanals of valuable university land, rendering significant amounts of additional land unusable, which result in a significant amount of additional land becoming unusable and about 2000 kanals of the most valuable (front) university land being left at the mercy of land encroachers.
The project also destroys the tranquil academic and research environment by sowing the seeds of discord and unrest among students, faculty, alumni, and university staff.
In September 2022, the bypass construction on university land started by breaking boundary wall of the university. A camp site was established on university property next to the QAU residential colony, concrete and asphalt plants were established, and hundreds of mature trees were cut down—all without the knowledge or consent of the university syndicate. Ironically, project development did not begin until obligatory Pak-Environmental Protection Agency permission had been received.
Showing serious concerns on the ongoing developments, QAU community, during past few weeks, has petitioned to University Syndicate, the Islamabad High Court, a Cabinet sub-committee, the Pak-EPA, and the Environmental Tribunal against this violation of QAU land.
Only QAU was intended to be located in the National Park region when the original Islamabad Master Plan was created in 1960. As a result, 1709 acres, 4 kanals, and 12 marlas of property in the National Park region were purchased for this reason. QAU was responsible for paying the purchase price as well as an additional 10.5 per cent in service fees to Capital Development Authority (CDA).
In keeping with the Master Plan’s description of a national park, QAU also houses seven national research institutes and centres. Therefore, building a motorway on QAU property would be against the Islamabad Master Plan. According to the road plan, the six-lane bypass on QAU land will require 600 feet of ROW. A mosque, children’s playground, and at least one entire row of homes will be included in this plan for the nearby QAU residential colony.
Strangely, the bypass is built as a four-lane road before and after the QAU area, where it is being built as a six-lane road. The Fact Sheet shared alternative options and suggested potential answers. The Northern and Southern Ring Road Bypasses are the real and long-term solution to the traffic congestion in Islamabad caused by traffic travelling to Murree/Galiyat/Northern Areas from all over Pakistan, according to the revised Islamabad Master Plan, while the congestion at Bara Kahu may be avoided by building an elevated road on the existing Murree Road, as announced by the previous two governments.
With this strategy, neither the Islamabad Master Plan nor the project’s new EIA report would need to be modified. It’s interesting to note that the current bypass proposal has a 1.5 km elevated section over the old Murree Road, while the remaining 4.2 km are on the ground, including 1.7 km on QAU territory. Instead of using up the land, another 2 km of elevated section will entirely fix the issue.
The bypass might be built in collaboration with QAU and possibly make use of the surrounding land, commencing close to the Metro station and running along the university Boundary Nullah, rather than unilaterally and arbitrarily cutting through the campus. This will prevent university land from being divided and minimise any disruption to the land’s academic, research, and residential uses.
Additionally, it is important to note that QAU does not trust CDA. There are two persistent difficulties, involving vacant possession of university land: A total of 1709 Acres, 4 Kanals, and 12 Marla of land were bought for the university between 1967 and 1972. These unpleasant manoeuvres in conjunction with the bypass issue are the most recent.
This land was given to QAU in an allocation in 1976. Since then, QAU has been writing to CDA on a regular basis to request vacant possession of QAU land and the eviction of illegal occupiers.But CDA never took a single step in this direction. The QAU 1709 Acres land demarcation was never finished by the CDA despite numerous requests, which prevented QAU from completing its border wall and exposed it to a variety of problems.
The land of QAU was surveyed in 2019 by Survey of Pakistan. According to the survey, the QAU Map Area that CDA gave up to it is 152 acres short of the 1709 acres that were allowed. A total of 400 acres still have unlawful residents on them, and CDA owes QAU 152 acres in unpaid land shortage.
It must be highlighted that despite several requests from the standing committees, cabinet decisions, and court orders, the CDA has not addressed these issues during the previous 50 years.
At the conclusion, all stakeholders hoped that their legitimate concerns would be effectively addressed and that the legitimate interests of Pakistan’s only national, top-ranked, and prestigious higher education institution, founded in the name of Pakistan’s founder, would be protected. To protect the tranquil academic/research atmosphere and priceless property of QAU, JAC will take every precaution to prevent this poorly thought-out proposal from being unilaterally carried out on QAU grounds.