Centre forms panel to monitor Karachi Transformation Plan
By
Staff Report
ISLAMABAD: The federal government on Wednesday formed a 10-member monitoring committee to remove obstacles and review progress on various initiatives being made under the Karachi Transformation Plan.
According to a notification issued by the federal government, the committee will be chaired by Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Mohammad Jehanzeb Khan, whereas chairmen of National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and Water & Power Development Authority (WAPDA), and secretaries of finance, water resources, planning, economic affairs and railway divisions would be the members.
The committee will ensure timely provision of funds for the projects, besides assisting the authorities in projects’ implementation.
It is pertinent to mention that Prime Minister Imran Khan had announced an ambitious Rs1.1 trillion package for the development of Karachi in September last year and had established a coordination and implementation committee under the chair of Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah.
Interestingly, Federal Minister for Maritime Affairs Ali Zaidi and Chief Minister of Sindh Syed Murad Ali Shah had last Saturday penned letters to the PM after a verbal clash during Karachi Transformation Plan meeting held earlier in the week. The information of the incident surfaced after the letter written by the chief minister came to the forefront.
https://profit.pakistantoday.com.pk...panel-to-monitor-karachi-transformation-plan/
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Gujjar Nullah to be cleared of encroachments starting February 3
Our Correspondent
February 2, 2021
Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has directed Karachi’s administration to start an operation on February 3 to clear the Gujjar Nullah of encroachments. He has also ordered constructing a water channel from Saadi Town to the Lat Dam to save the area from urban flooding.
“I want to construct another dam on upstream Lat Dam so that wastewater and rainwater can be stored there for agricultural purposes apart from recharging the groundwater aquifers of District Malir.” The chief executive took these decisions on Monday at the CM House, where he was chairing a meeting of the Provincial Coordination & Implementation Committee.
Gujjar Nullah
Karachi Commissioner Naveed Shaikh told the meeting that 3,957 structures along the Gujjar Nullah have been identified for removal. The meeting decided that a 12.6km area on either side of the storm water drain will be cleared so that a road on both sides can be constructed for vehicular traffic.
The CM directed him and Karachi Administrator Laeeq Ahmed to remove soft encroachments from February 3 to 13, and to launch a full-scale operation on February 14. “We have to clear the encroachments and save the city from urban flooding.”
Local Government Minister Nasir Shah said 10 dumpers, four loaders, four excavators, two jackhammers (pneumatic drills) and 100 manual labour have been engaged for the purpose, and will start the operation on February 3. The debris will be dumped at Jam Chakro.
The CM ordered the Sindh police chief to deploy law enforcement officials for the security of those participating in the operation. He also directed the commissioner to provide cheques to all the families to be affected by the removal of encroachments.
An amount of Rs15,000 a month per household is being given to the affected families for six months. The cheques are being given after the biometric verification of the displaced occupants.
Mehmoodabad Nullah
The meeting was told that seven kilometres of the 7.5km length on both sides of the Mehmoodabad Nullah has been cleared by removing encroachments, while the remaining 500 metres is yet to be cleared.
Under the anti-encroachment operation, 235 units and structures have been removed since January 4. During the drive, 277 dumpers, 30 trucks, 31 loaders, 48 excavators, six shovels and eight jackhammers have been used, while 10,439 tonnes of debris has been transported to the landfill site.
Forty-five of the 65 compensation cheques have been handed over to the affected families, while the remaining 20 cheques will be released shortly because the affected families have been out of the city.
Solid waste
The LG minister told the meeting that in order to make solid waste management more efficient, a new draft of the Sindh Solid Waste Act has been formulated and sent to the law department for vetting.
The proposed act includes the establishment of a separate board at each divisional headquarter level. There will be six boards across the province, and each of them will work as an independent and autonomous body within their respective jurisdictions. The boards will be headed by their respective managing directors.
Each of the divisional commissioners will be the chairman of their respective boards, while the mayors and the chairmen of the municipal corporations concerned will be the boards’ members. Some technical as well as private members will also be part of the boards.
Lat Dam
The meeting decided to develop a separate storm water drain from Saadi Town to Lat Dam so that the area can be saved from flooding during downpour. The CM directed the NED University of Engineering & Technology to study the project and submit its report.
The Lat Dam is a recharge dam. It has a capacity of 53 acre feet. The weir height is 10 feet. The upstream of the dam or weir is totally filled with sediments. The dam reservoir had silted within two years of its construction.
The CM directed the LG department to remove sediments from the dam so that heavy rainwater can be stored there. He also directed the LG and irrigation departments to prepare feasibility reports of another dam on upstream Lat Dam.
Thado Dam
Taking a policy decision, the CM decided to store wastewater and rainwater in the Thado Dam to use it for agricultural purposes. He said that presently, wastewater and rainwater is flowing into the sea, but it can be stored in the Thado Dam to use it for agriculture.
“With the storage of a massive quantity of water in the dam, the water table of the area [Gadap] will be recharged, and around 33,730 acres of land will be cultivated.”
The Thado Dam is located in Gadap Town’s Thado Nai, a tributary of the Malir River upstream Konkar Town. It is an earth-filled dam. The purpose of the dam was to raise the water table for cultivation. The dam had been commissioned in 2020.
https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/78...-cleared-of-encroachments-starting-february-3
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PM focused on Karachi: PTI MNA
The Newspaper's Staff Reporter Published February 3, 2021 - Updated about 9 hours ago
KARACHI: Federal parliamentary secretary of ministry of inter-provincial coordination Syma Nadeem assured industrialists that Karachi was the centre of attention for Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Addressing the members of Korangi Association of Trade and Industry (KATI), she said that due to the PM’s focus on Karachi, the federal government has been enhancing its role in the development of the city.
She said steps were being taken to resolve the city’s basic issues under the Karachi Transformation Package, K-IV project and improvement of power supply infrastructure in the city.
“We are aware of the pressing demands from the people and business community of Karachi to remove hurdles created by the 18th Amendment. Numerous proposals for the enhancement of the federal government’s role in Karachi are under consideration to meet these demands,” she added.
KATI president Saleem-uz-Zaman said that Karachi provides the biggest share of revenue and time has come that the city should get its rightful share.
The dream of national prosperity cannot come true without development of Karachi, he said, adding that all the projects under Karachi Transformation Package should be completed on a priority basis.
Disputes between the federal and provincial governments should not affect the development of Karachi, he said.
Published in Dawn, February 3rd, 2021
https://www.dawn.com/news/1605195
to see Karachi is making its come back to its former glory the "city of lights"
