Cleaning the city: Another CM, another deadline

Each DMC given Rs20m to lift garbage within 10 days

KARACHI: A month after former chief minister (CM) Syed Qaim Ali Shah gave a three-day deadline to clean the city and backtracked on his statement within a few hours, the incumbent Sindh CM Murad Ali Shah has directed authorities to clean the metropolis of garbage and construction debris within eight to ten days.

Presiding over a meeting on ‘cleanliness of Karachi’ at the New Sindh Secretariat on Monday morning, the CM said, “I am working hard to keep the city clean by lifting garbage, repairing and reconstructing roads and improving the drainage system,” adding that this is his commitment to the people of the city as a Karachiite.

“I had issued directives to all the deputy commissioners (DC), administrators of district municipal corporations (DMC), water board and other relevant authorities to start cleanliness of the city by lifting garbage, debris and sweeping the main roads,” said Shah.

“I must appreciate that the citizens are witnessing progress of cleanliness work but this is not enough. You [DCs/DMCs] have to do more for the people of this city,” he said, adding that he was keen to hand over a clean city to the newly-elected leadership of local bodies.

“A dumper lifts 20 tons of garbage in a single trip. If ten dumper trucks are engaged in every union council (UC), particularly those where garbage has been dumped, it can be cleared easily,” local government minister Jam Khan Shoro briefed CM Shah.

Shah, saying that he was ready to release the necessary funds for the purpose as long as the DCs and DMCs start their work, approved to give a Rs20million grant to each DMC and Rs20million to the Sindh Industrial Trading Estate (Site), to start cleanliness work in their respective areas.

“I am giving you an ample amount and will take account of each and every penny, so the funds must be used transparently,” clarified Shah, directing Site managing-director to involve the Site association in the work.

The Karachi commissioner, who is the project-director of different development works in the city, was directed by Shah to start repair and maintenance of roads for which the government has already given Rs1.6 billion. “I will personally visit the areas where uplift works have already started,” said Shah.

“When the government machinery will start working in time, things will automatically come to normal,” he insisted, saying that everyone - the ministers, government officers, civil society, social workers and every resident of the city - has to play their role. Talking to the press, Shah reasserted the same commitments.

Apart from Shoro, the meeting was attended by the CM’s principal-secretary Naveed Kamran Baloch, local government secretary Baqaullah Unar, Karachi commissioner Aijaz Ali Khan, Karachi Metropolitan Corporation administrator Laiq Ahmed, water board managing-director Misbahuddin Farid, all DCs and administrators of all DMCs and representatives of district councils.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 23^rd, 2016.