City District Government Karachi (CDGK) has all of a sudden once again closed on Monday morning a number of main roads to lay new service lines for water and sewerage and to replace old roads with new ones. This way the development works would be completed by December 2005 as has been repeatedly claimed by the Governor of Sindh.
The sudden closure of roads took by surprise office goers who got stuck up in traffic jams and reached their workplaces late. Many children missed their schools and ambulances that didn't know about the road cutting activity got stuck up with patients inside.
Sources said the closure of roads would continue for at least four weeks. In case the contractors continued to get payment in time the work would progress but if once the payment were delayed, 'development work' would stop and took many more weeks to complete.
In district Central main road connecting Site industrial area with Nazimabad, Nazimabad Chowrangi and Lasbela Bridge has been closed for traffic. The entire road has been dug up and heaps of debris put to close entry into side lanes and crossing.
The same treatment has been given to Old Golimar Road, which connects Zoological Garden (Gandhi Garden) with industrial area. This road, popularly known as Manghopir Road, has been dug on either side to lay service connection. The closure of dual carriageway in Nazimabad and Old Golimar has begun to create traffic jams during peak hours as the reckless public transport drivers block roads to obstruct others and find out a way for themselves.
There is no traffic police on these roads to regulate traffic and come to the rescue of stranded people. Usually, traffic signals are also shut and a lone traffic constable tries to manage the unruly traffic.
The CDGK unmindful of inconvenience to the people living in this district and in its vicinity has no plan to provide alternate routes to people. CDGK engineers afraid of political changes said the contracts awarded by the outgoing nazim were being implemented. They said there were number of other road projects that were to be undertaken but orders would be given only after the new city nazim was elected.
They said there were a large number of roads that were in need of carpeting in districts West, Central and South but the contractors have refused to complete their works for want of clearance of their pending bills.
Sources said the new city nazim and town nazims would like to award contracts and carryout development works immediately after assuming their responsibilities.
They said the adviser on local bodies to the government of Sindh has asked CDGK to speed up work and complete all ongoing projects before December.
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