Roads around Gizri flyover to be fit for use by June 30

KARACHI: The construction of roads on either side of the Gizri flyover will be completed by June 30, the Defence Housing Authority (DHA) administration announced on Thursday.

“The court was informed of the [ongoing] development work on both sides of the flyover. One layer of carpeting has been done and the second phase of carpeting the roads is about to start,” said DHA spokesperson Colonel Riffat Naqvi while talking to The Express Tribune. He added, however, that the carpeting is being slowed down by the simultaneous damage control undertaken by the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board (KWSB).

“Damaged power lines, water lines and blocked drainage systems were unearthed when the roads were dug up by DHA, after which the KWSB was asked to fix the issues,” Naqvi claimed. “When the KWSB informed us that they didn’t have funding for the project, DHA provided them Rs30 million to help.”

The work is taking longer than expected as the old pipes have to be replaced by new ones that could initially not be found. The water board did not have proper maps of the area, causing further delays in completing the work, said Naqvi.

Compensation for indignant shopkeepers and residents

DHA has yet to announce compensation for the businesses that have been affected by the construction of the Gizri flyover, despite numerous complaints by shopkeepers regarding the depreciation of their assets and sales.

“The damage has been done,” said the owner of a paint store in Gizri while talking to The Express Tribune. “The construction might be complete now, but things have not gone back to normal from any angle. Our business has gone down considerably in the last three years and it is all due to this project. All our customers have gone elsewhere and we have stayed here covered in dust from all the construction work.”

“I do not think things will get any better,” said the owner of a stationary store in Gizri. “Just take a look around you. Everything is still haywire. There is no proper parking and the roads are still in a bad shape. Even if all this is sorted, our business will not pick up again. People have started going elsewhere.”

“There is no use talking about the situation,” a shopkeeper at an electrical supply store told The Express Tribune. “This has been the worse thing for us. Shops here are packing up and relocating elsewhere as all of our customers are gone. The dust and noise has made our lives miserable. These three years have been nothing but a curse.”

Aslam Gujjar, the owner of a battery store in Girzi and the president of the Gizri Shopkeepers Association as well as a member of the Cantonment Board Clifton (CBC) committee, had a different perspective on the project.

“Yes, businesses in the area have been affected for the last three years. But things will change,” he told The Express Tribune. “Business will pick up once again within the next few months, once lights are placed under the bridge and car-parking issues are resolved,” he said, adding that Gizri has the potential to become the most successful commercial area in DHA.

“We cannot compensate businesses without addressing the issues of the people living around the flyover. We will assess the entrepreneurs’ losses after the construction work is complete,” said Naqvi, who added that a board had been set up where members of the cantonment, as well as shopkeepers and residents, will be given representation to resolve the matter.

“The flyover is a good route for people trying to reach DHA. However, we do understand that some people have been affected. They will be compensated accordingly,” said Naqvi.

The Gizri flyover was inaugurated on January 13, 2010. Although the construction of the 1.2 kilometre-long flyover was seen as a major accomplishment for DHA, it created a certain amount of resentment among the shopkeepers and residents of Gizri.

According to DHA administrator Brigadier Khalid Tirmizi, however, the flyover will help the traffic flow smoothly to and from DHA.

The construction of the flyover was initiated in 2007 and the project was to be completed in two years.

The completion was delayed by a year after the court issued a stay order while taking notice of a petition filed by Shehri, an NGO working for environmental issues in Karachi.

Published in the Express Tribune, June 5^th, 2010.