KARACHI Sindh Local Government Minister Saeed Ghani has said the first phase of an anti-encroachment drive will be launched in the megacity along 30 main roads identified by the municipal commissioner of Karachi Metropolitan Corporation and towns.

Chairing a meeting, he said that the Sindh Chief Minister had expressed serious resentment at the issue of encroachments. He said the municipal commissioners of the KMC and towns would identify 30 main roads in Karachi for launching the anti-encroachment drive on an immediate basis.

He told the meeting that the anti-encroachment drive in the second phase would cover internal roads and streets of the towns in the city. Ghani directed the KMC and town administrations to immediately rescind all the temporary permissions issued by them.

He directed the towns to submit to his office reports in the next 24 hours about income and other details of the road-cutting permissions, other temporary NOCs, and charged parking zones in their respective jurisdictions whether managed by them or the KMC.

He said the towns should also provide comprehensive reports in the next 24 hours about temporary permissions issued to hotels for storing building materials and placing generators in their jurisdictions.

Ghani told the participants of the meeting that the Sindh government had increased the monthly OZT share of the towns and union councils in the province.

He said that this increase in the fiscal share would allow the towns and UCs to have funds at their disposal for uplift works after paying salaries and pensions to their staffers. He told the meeting that the fiscal assistance provided to every UC had increased from Rs 500,000 to Rs 1.2 million.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024