First phase of 'Clean Karachi Campaign' begins

100,000 tons of leftover garbage from all over city to be disposed of

KARACHI: The first phase of the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) and Bahria Town's 'Clean Karachi Campaign' has begun a month after a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed. The campaign kicked off in District Central and both organisations have resolved to clean the city and rid it of garbage.
Karachi Mayor Wasim Akhtar, during a programme held at the office of the District Municipal Corporation (DMC) Central, inaugurated the first phase of the campaign by driving a dumper. DMC Central Chairman Rehan Hashmi, Vice Chairman Shakir Ali and others were also present on the occasion.



In August, an MoU was signed between Mayor Akhtar and Bahria Town chairperson Malik Riaz Hussain in which it was decided that a cleanliness campaign, a joint effort of the KMC and Bahria Town, would be initiated. The real estate group vowed to provide logistical support to the KMC and DMCs to dispose of 100,000 tons of leftover garbage from all districts of the city.
Akhtar earlier said that the campaign was supposed to begin after Eidul Azha, however, it was delayed for almost a month.
The mayor thanked Bahria Town for assisting the city and said it had been neglected for the last eight years. "Local bodies were under the Sindh government's control and the success of the municipal administration was in fact the success of the provincial government but we cannot perform exemplary work with these resources," said the mayor.



"If not with power and resources, we will show our service to the voters with great passion as we have been elected by the people of this city and they expect us to work for them," he said.
He added that the backlog garbage lying in the city requires a better disposal mechanism, machinery and funds and such generous campaigns by Bahria Town or any other private group are only a temporary solution. "A mega city like Karachi cannot be run like this, as it is the revenue engine of the entire country," he said.



Bahria Town Chief Operating Officer Admiral Ahmed Hayat said in his address that the campaign was a part of the real estate development firm's policy to develop a better Pakistan and also a sign of Bahria Town's resolve.
Hashmi said that 17 dumping points were pinpointed and Bahria Town would dump the garbage in Jam Chakro with the help of 100 vehicles. The real estate group's Commander Zulfiqar has been nominated as the focal person for the campaign.