Friday, February 6, 2009

CDGK will continue to serve the people! New roads are providing easy & direct access to highway: Kamal

City Nazim Mustafa Kamal has said that that the development of cities has an impact on the entire country, therefore, a command and control system should be formed for these cities at a national level under a coordinated policy, whereby the police, traffic police and all other organisations work under one absolute authority.

Kamal said this while briefing the Senate Standing Committee for Local Government and Rural Development at his office on Tuesday.

The committee members included its Chairman Senator Mir Mohabbat Khan Marri, Federal Local Government Minister Justice (Retd) Abdul Razaq Thahim, Senators Hafiz Rasheed Ahmed, Ammar Ahmed Khan, Akbar Shah, Sahibzada Khalild Jan, Iqbal Zafar Jhagra, Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Hyderi and Mumtaz Hussain Mahfooz.

Kamal reiterated that special attention needs to be paid to cities if Pakistan is to keep pace with the developed nations of the world, therefore, a proposal in this regard has been initiated at the provincial level. Highlighting the persistent traffic problems, Kamal said that around 600 vehicles are registered in Karachi on a daily basis, adding that the city’s transport problems cannot be solved without a proper mass transit system. However, he was quick to add that a mass transit system cannot be possible without federal resources, as it requires heavy investment that no local government can possibly undertake.

Kamal said that the city government initiated the construction of signal-free corridors keeping these problems in mind and has completed two corridors, comprising of 11 underpasses and flyovers, in just three years, adding that construction of the third signal-free corridor will start this month.

He informed the committee members that work on the Preedy Street project, which has been lying in abeyance for the past 30 years, has been initiated, with the shifting of 1,350 houses that are in the path of the project being the top priority. According to him, the bridge constructed at the Lyari River will be opened for traffic this month, while work on Lyari’s internal water network is making good progress and will be completed within another month.

Kamal urged the need to provide constitutional protection to the law regarding acquiring of permission from the city government prior to the cutting of roads. He said that the city government has incorporated digital maps of all the areas in the master plan to ascertain the exact location of each and every utility.

He backed his claim for constitutional protection by citing the recent bursting of a pipeline during repair work undertaken by the Sui Southern Gas Company. Acknowledging that the disaster management system of the city is not in an ideal condition, he said that a Dutch team has been called in to train around 250 people within six months. Kamal also highlighted the important part played by town nazims, stating that no development work is carried out without their prior consultation and approval.

Touching upon the water shortage in the city, he was of the view that if measures are taken to stop water leakages and theft, then the city’s water requirements will be met by the year 2011. He stated that the city government is already working on a plan in this regard, stating that it would require funding of around Rs 1.8 billion.

The Senate Standing Committee, while appreciating the development work carried out in Karachi and particularly praising the nazim’s performance, agreed that the city should be under one command and control.

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