Cleanliness drive: Sindh CM releases Rs 88 million to DMCs for refuse vans' repair

Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah in order to make his month-long cleanliness drive sustainable has released Rs 88 million to three DMCs and District Council Karachi to get their machinery repaired and start cleanliness work and the district where SSWMA is working would be activated further. The chief minister said the Sindh Solid Waste Management Authority (SSWMA) was working in three districts, South, East and Malir, therefore their cleanliness job rest with it. He added that the districts such as Korangi, West, Central and District Council may be given funds to repair refuse vehicles, and other related machinery so that they could start cleanliness of their areas.

He ordered release of Rs17 million to Korangi, Rs22 million to West, Rs37 million to Central and Rs12 million to Karachi District Council. This, he said, on Tuesday while presiding over a meeting to review the results of the month-long cleanliness drive concluded on Oct 21. The meeting was attended by Chief Secretary Mumtaz Shah, provincial ministers, Saeed Ghani, Syed Nasir Shah, Adviser to CM Murtaza Wahab, Principal Secretary to CM Sajid Jamal Abro, Commissioner Karachi Iftikhar Shahalwani, Secretary Local Government Roshan Shaikh, MD SSWMA Asif Ikram, MD Water Board Asadulllah Khan, all deputy commissioners and chairmen DMCs.

Shah directed Sindh Solid Waste Management Authority (SSWMA) to take strict action against contracting firms if they fail to deliver. "This is not a free of cost work but the provincial government is paying to contracting firms, therefore cleanliness work must be up to the satisfaction of the citizens."

The chief minister said that just after concluding of garbage lifting drive, the contracting firms of SSWMA went on strike. "This is a deliberate attempt to turn the city once again filthy and this is not acceptable at any cost," he said and directed SSWMA MD Asif Ikram to take strict action against the contractors.

The chief minister directed the DMCs to trickle down sweeping work and front-end collection upto Katchra kundi to Union Council level so that monitoring and supervision can be made at the door step and easily. The chief minister also directed deputy commissioners to declare model areas in term of cleanliness and hygiene in their areas and then keep them expanding.

The meeting also decided to inform all the builders not to put their debris on the road and bound them to lift their construction material on their expenses, otherwise impose fine on them. The chief minister also directed DCs and Chairmen DMCs to develop at least two garbage transfer station (GTS) in their respective districts. The chief minister said that he would visit the city very soon and witness the cleanliness work.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2019