The need for regulation of the Construction Industry

The increase in private housing developments has allowed the construction industry to grow faster than ever in Pakistan. This increase has been reflected by the consumption of the raw materials feeding this sector. The local dispatch/consumption of cement, shows a continuous rise in consumed quantities of cement since 2001 to date (with the exception of two years). 9.93 mn tons of cement consumed in the financial year of 2001-2002 has reached to 33 mn tones in the financial year of 2015-2016. The CEO of Dewan Cement, a cement manufacturing giant, has been quoted saying that 70% of the cement produced is consumed by real-estate construction, while only 30% goes for infrastructure developments. This rise is not only highlights the growth of this industry in Pakistan but also the need for its careful regulation by local laws.

The professionals engaging this sector are mainly regulated by the Pakistan Council of Architects & Town planners (PCATP) & the Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC). In addition to this various local development authorities, collectively known as Local Area Authorities, have a mandate to implement rules regulating the construction activity within their respective jurisdictions covering heads like total land use, building design guidelines and environmental limitations. The transfer of power from provincial governments to local councils was carried out in all major provinces of Pakistan. In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa the Local Government Act 2013 assisted in such a transfer for implementation of Land use and Construction Bye-Laws to local councils including village councils, via the KP Building Model Bye-Laws 2017. These were given to Local Area Authorities such as the District Government, Tehsil Municipal Administration, Village Councils and other regional development authorities. Similarly in Punjab the Punjab Local Government Act 2013 allowed the Local Area Authorities to manage heads like Land use, erection and re-erection of buildings. Punjab has numerous regional development authorities. The Lahore Development Authority (LDA) has the mandate for the implementation of Urban Development rules in Lahore and also has the capacity to formulate its own rules to regulate development in the city. But the overall construction activity in Pakistani cities is not carefully watched or regulated, and much construction has been carried out in contravention to the preexisting law. This often leads to charges of encroachment by the same regulatory bodies who do not enforce the initial rules, which leads to buildings being demolished which accords heavy losses to the country’s economy.

These rules, their quality and the efficiency of their implementation deserves an in-depth analysis. The fact that no such study or analysis has ever been carried out, adds to its need.

The PCATP bears primary responsibility to educate the public on the need for a professional in their construction plans and the construction process. This the PCATP seems to not have fulfilled, as lack of understanding of the intricacies of construction work leads many people to engage unqualified drafters to plan and direct their construction. The best analogy to describe the disparity between the requisite training of a drafter and a certified constructional engineer or an architect is that of the difference between a pharmacist or a medical technician and a doctor. While a doctor is trained by professionals and has a body vouching for his skill while a human’s life hangs in the balance, a pharmacist or a medical technician does not have the requisite training or certification to associate itself with processes in which it oversees taking care of the lives of people. Following this analogy, the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) (the regulating authority by which all medical and dental professionals are certified before they can legally practice) has put in stricter checks and tighter controls to ensure such instances of illegal practice are eliminated. On the other hand, the PCATP’s efforts for similar results have not been seen.

Unless a massive crackdown against un-qualified architects is put into play, the benefits of educated space planning and design are unlikely to be achieved. Space planning requires much more than drawing some pretty lines indicating where a room would be. An architect is trained to maximize the potential of a given space for maximum inflow of natural light and ventilation which in turn reduces energy consumption, making any given area more efficient. The PCATP has limited its role to maintaining a register of Architects and Accreditation of degree programs for arhitects. Nothing more is being done to disseminate relevant information to the public. One fails to see any investment on this body’s part to educate anyone on the importance of the profession of architecture and the imperative need for its addition to the process of construction. It further fails to encounter any information for the need or importance of environmentally friendly and energy or cost-effective designs. This the PCATP and other bodies tasked with the enforcement of construction rules, need to remedy.