Peshawar: Ms Wazir is a lady on a mission – to make Cantonment encroachment free
Ali Sheikh
PESHAWAR: Ms Qurratul Ain Wazir, the first female magistrate of Cantonment Board Peshawar, has said that she had collected over Rs30million in terms of property tax in three months (from April to June 2018) and has already collected Rs10million only in September.
Talking to The Frontier Post, Ms Wazir said that removing encroachments from the Peshawar cantonment was the biggest challenge for her but with the support of people and media she was successfully leading the anti-encroachment drive. “Anti-encroachment drive in Shafi Market, Peshawar Sadar, was a challenge and we had to face stiff resistance from the shopkeepers but we remove the encroachments,” Ms Wazir said while adding that she had received a number of complaints from the women regarding difficulties in shopping from the Shafi Market in the presence of the encroachments.
Ms Wazir said she personally supervised the 10 hour long drive in Shafi market where encroachments from around 400 shops were removed. “We have also passed Cantonment Board Resolution according to which the encroachers would be fined Rs25,000 for the first time which the same will be doubled if they involved in encroachment again. Similarly, they will have to pay Rs one lac for the third time 
offence and their shops will be sealed and the items will be confiscated until they pay the fine. “Previously they had to pay a meager amount of fine but now with the huge amount of fine the people are thinking twice before doing the encroachment,” Qurratul Ain added.
Speaking about the hygienic conditions of food items including the slaughter houses she said that she along with her team visited a number of slaughterhouse in the Peshawar Cantonment and found out that the conditions were not suitable. “The animals were being sold without the stamp of the Cantonment Board Peshawar slaughter house which is a crime,” Qurratul Ain said.
She also informed that some of the workers in the slaughterhouses were found putting Cantonment Board stamps by themselves after bringing the animals from outside the Cantonment area which again was a crime. She said that she personally inspects the hygienic conditions at the restaurants and with the number of raids increasing each passing day the restaurant owners and workers and doing their best to keep the conditions as per the standards.
Replying to another question, she said that people hesitate in paying the property tax but now after successful raids and recoveries people are more willing to pay the tax than facing the action. In response to a query, she said allotment of parking was not under her control but her team was still having an eye on illegal parking. “For any illegal parking Rs3000 fine will be imposed and for motorcycle parking Rs1000 fine will be imposed. When asked about her fame especially on social media, she said that she was just doing her work for the betterment of the people and not for the fame.
Qurratul Ain Wazir belongs to Wana in South Waziristan and has taken her early education from Bannu. She has done LLB and MA Political Science before passing the provincial Public Service Commission examination. Before joining Cantonment Board Peshawar she has worked at the Planning and Development, Establishment and Monitoring and Evaluation departments.