Sindh govt decides to compensate more than 2,000 shopkeepers

Those whose houses were demolished along KCR track will be rehabilitated: CM

KARACHI: The Sindh cabinet, on Saturday, decided to rehabilitate and compensate the shopkeepers who have recently lost their businesses in the on-going anti-encroachment drive under the orders of the Supreme Court (SC). The anti-encroachment drive was taken up as the special agenda of the meeting, where it was also decided that Empress Market will be restored to its original form.

The cabinet meeting, chaired by the Sindh Chief Minister (CM) Syed Murad Ali Shah also discussed the option to rehabilitate the 6,000 people who have their houses along the Karachi Circular Railway tracks. “These houses and other structures will be demolished and government will compensate the victims,” Shah said.



Official sources privy to the development told The Express Tribune that a study, conducted by Japan International Cooperation Agency, was shared with cabinet members. The chief minister directed the officials to expedite the work on this project.

Regarding the compensation to shopkeepers whose shops were demolished in the anti-encroachment drive, a senior official said that the number of shopkeepers affected were 2,000, out of which 1,100 were in Saddar area. “CM has constituted a committee comprising Local Government Minister Saeed Ghani, Energy Minister Imtiaz Shaikh and Advisor to CM Barrister Murtaza Wahab, Karachi Mayor Wasim Akhtar and Karachi Commissioner Iftikhar Shalwani to work out a detailed report of the affected shopkeepers and recommend compensation so that they could be rehabilitated,” the spokesperson for CM House said.

Shah, while addressing cabinet members, said that the SC order for removal of encroachments from the city was guidance for the government, therefore operation would continue; however human settlements would be protected as far as possible.

Shah further said, “I am concerned about the affectees whose shops have been bulldozed,” he said and added therefore they must be provided an alternative space to carry out their business activities.

Briefing the media after the meeting, Wahab said, “We will not let anyone demolish the settlements and render people homeless. It has been decided that Sindh government will approach SC on this issue.” The information advisor said that people in various areas of Karachi were being humiliated and threatened in the name of anti-encroachment drive and provincial government would not tolerate this. “It has been decided to file review petition in SC requesting to revisit the decision of bulldozing the houses and settlements which have been leased,” he said.

SITE Ltd

The cabinet discussed that the Sindh Industrial Trade Estate (SITE) Ltd had no authority to convert industrial plots into commercial plots in its area. Therefore, the chief minister directed removal of all the encroachments made by commercial entities causing obstruction in the flow of drains in all estates of SITE Ltd. The SITE Ltd should take up the task of removing encroachments on its own, otherwise Karachi commissioner would step in, the cabinet decided.



The chief minister also constituted a committee under Chief Minister Advisor of Industries Sardar Mohammad Bux Maher and Local Government minister and CM adviser as its members. The committee would review the layouts of all the SITE Ltd and make necessary recommendations for their upgradation and get them approved from the board. It was also decided that composition of the SITE boards will be changed, increasing the role of government.

Wage increase

The cabinet discussed the proposal made by Sindh Minimum Wages Board in its meeting on August 16, 2018. The board had recommended minimum wages for skilled, semi-skilled and highly skilled employees in 41 different categories of industries in the province.

As per the recommendation, the wages of highly skilled workers would be from Rs21,083 to Rs22,569. The salaries of skilled workers would be from Rs18,589 to Rs19,836 and the wages of semi-skilled workers would be from Rs16,596 to Rs17,345. The minimum wage of unskilled labour has already been approved at Rs16,200. The cabinet approved the proposal.

Sindh Reproductive Healthcare Rights Act 2018

The cabinet also approved the Sindh Reproductive Healthcare Rights Act 2018. Health Minister said that the legislation for reproductive healthcare rights was needed in the province. The population programmes emphasised the family planning services drives largely by numbers and demographic targets.

The chief minister said that in spite of gradual improvement in some indicators over the past decades, the reproductive health status of the population remains much below the desired level when compared with countries of similar socio-economic condition. Shah added, “Women reproductive health is not just confined to reproductive year of life (15 to 49 years) but it is related to different stages of life cycle; infancy and childhood, adolescences, adulthood and older age, reflecting different reproductive health needs and behaviours.” The cabinet approved the draft act and directed the law adviser to once again vet the draft.



Katchi Abadi Dept renamed

The cabinet also approved the nomenclature of the Sindh Katchi Abadis Department. The new name of the department would be Human Settlement, Spatial Development & Social Housing Department.

The cabinet also approved appointment of Jan Muhammad Lanjar as the Presiding Officer of Sindh Public Property Special Court (removal of encroachment), Sukkur. 

Published in The Express Tribune, December 2^nd, 2018.