The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) is ready to extend financial assistance to launch four projects estimated to cost Rs 137.7 billion, which will include Karachi Expressway/Ring Road, S-III, lining of KB Feeder and the Kandhkot-Ghouspur Bridge on River Indus. The decision was taken at a meeting on Wednesday between Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah and the AIIB's vice president, D.J. Pandian, at the Chief Minister's House.
The chief minister said that 500 MGD of untreated waste water generated in Karachi is being discharged into the Arabian Sea without any treatment. The chairman of the P&D, Mohammad Waseem informed the visiting team that work on Rs 36.117 billion S-III is in progress. The provincial government is investing Rs 7.982 billion to enhance the capacity of three treatment plants from 561 MGD to 300 MGD, and to construct a new treatment plant of 200 MGD.
He said that in accordance with the requirements of the National Environmental Quality Standards (NEQS), industrial units are required to undertake pre-treatment of industrial effluent before discharging it into the municipal sewerage system. At present 94 MGD of industrial effluent is generated from five industrial estates of Karachi and discharged directly into open drains. The chief minister said that due to cost escalation of the S-III at Rs 36.117 billion, the Sindh government needs Rs 28 billion for completion of the project.
He said that with the establishment of five combined effluent treatment plants, the provincial government would be able to meet the World Trade Organization's requirements for seafood exports. He added that other issues, such as protection of natural water bodies from contamination, safeguarding of soil and groundwater and protection of agricultural crops from contamination would also be addressed. Discussing the lining of KB Feeder, The Special Secretary on irrigation, Junaid Memon, said that the design discharge capacity of the channel is 9,100 cusecs but due to silt it has come down to 7,500 cusecs.
The chief minister added that he has planned a project to line 38 miles to save around 650 cusecs of water from conveyance losses, which would be utilized to bridge the supply-demand gap. On the Malir Expressway/Karachi Ring Road the chief minister said that Karachi has a north-western bypass, although a megacity like Karachi should have a ring road to facilitate traffic. Therefore, he added, there is an urgent need for a south-eastern bypass.
He added that the proposed corridor would provide efficient movement of vehicular traffic and goods from the port to the rest of the country. He said two major settlements, DHA City and Bahria Town, are developing at a very fast pace, which requires an alternative road network to remove the sufferings of commuters. It would also cater to the requirement of Education City, which has been planned for establishment of educational institutions, he added.
The chairman of P&D, Mohammad Waseem, said that expression of interest for construction of the road on BOT basis was invited by the local government department. The EIA study is under process and PC-I is being prepared. He added that Rs 61 billion would be required for construction of a 47.2 kms corridor, with three lanes on either side.
Minister PD Mir Hazar Khan Bijarani who comes from Kandhkot-Kashmore district said that the length of the present route connecting Ghotki-Ghouspur (kandhkot) is 152 kilometres through Sukkur Barrage and 188 kms through Guddu Barrage. If a Ghotki-Kandhkot bridge is constructed it would connect the Indus Highway with the National Highway and reduce the distance between the two cities, Ghotki-Kandhkot to 127 kms. The project will cost Rs 6.452 billion. The AIIB delegation was also briefed on other projects but they showed their interest in the four projects, S-III, KB Feeder Lining, Malir Expressway/Ring Road and Ghotki-Kandhkot Bridge on the River Indus.
The Vice President of AIIB, D.J. Pandian, asked the chief minister to send details on the present status of the projects and concept papers so that they could be presented to a board meeting. He added that he and his team were satisfied with the four projects and would also support the provincial government in the establishment of a de-salination plant to provide drinking water to the population of Karachi.
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