File photo of Lahore Metro Bus. PHOTO: EXPRESS/ ZAHOORUL HAQ.
Shahbaz, in an interview to journalist Kamran Khan during his show on Geo TV, said that launching the metro bus project in Karachi would be Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz’s (PML-N) top priority after coming into power.
The former minister also said that the loadshedding issue would be addressed by adopting short, medium and long-term measures.
Shahbaz said that the short-term measure would include a check on power theft and line losses, while recovery of bills from provinces will also be ensured. “The recovered money will be injected into the system which will serve two aims – stopping the circular debt from snowballing further and generating more power,” he was further quoted as saying.
In the long-run, additional power would be generated through available resources including coal reserves, he said.
“We developed Punjab, we will build Pakistan on the same lines,” he vowed.
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COMMENTS (103)
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I love PMLN..just look at the concern shahbaz shareef is having for Karachi..He promised Metro bus in Lahore and he fullfilled his promise.I salute PMLN for this initiative..Next elections are PMLN's in Sindh too..This country will be getting in right track very soon Insha-Allah.
@Ansari: Plz re-read my comments I said "GDP". Please look up any dictionary to find that out what GDP means. GDP is the real measure of contribution to a country and not Federal Revenue [Basics]. Federal Revenue is high in Karachi bcoz of lots of people are on jobs who are honest tax payers not by choice though, You know what I mean and the same goes for all employees throughout Pakistan. For your kind information visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ListofPakistaniprovincesbygrossdomestic_product
Karachi walo no need to get excited first see the Pros & Cons…..Basically its “Jangla” buss ha (buss route is secured by huge iron “jangla” ). I lived near metro buss Lahore and traveled once in it . Advantages: 1) 30-70 billion will be spent on Public infrastructure, very low cost as compared to Circular Railway very low cost of maintenance, you can run any other Chakra buses, especially beneficial of Ambulances, VVIP’s 2)That route will become high way means (1 kilometer tk koi crossing nai… 2 ghaty ka rasta aadhy Ghanty ma ) 3) Project will be completed within a year (Job Done! nothing like decades long Program . 4) Itefaq ka sarya/cement, lagay ga…labor ko rozgar millay ga, Shrief family ky cement shares ki price rize kary gi, in ky contractors ko thaika millay ga…. Disadvantages: jis area ma Jangla Buss banti us area ky business man he behter bta sakty hain k un ky sath kya beeti !
Metro Bus is very important so that they hold their NAME TAGS with it ... However any project thought by others like the circular Railways for Karachi which is funded as well is not much interesting
my sincere Salam to shahbaz sharif. He should come to karachi and himself look the pathetic condition of transport in this city. He should also give due consideration to law and order.
Law and order was very poor during last 5 years in Karachi due to politics of reconciliation. I believe that Shehbaz Sharif can resolve these issues if he is given Interior Ministry. Metro Bus Project is also a good thing that should be appreciated. Well done shehbaz sharif.
Hats off to Shehbaz Sharif. Transport condition is miserable in Karachi. It would be a good addition.
Shehbaz Sharif wanst to build such a mega project for those people who do not vote for PML-N. I appreciate him for such a good gesture and I pray for him. But I know that people of Karachi will still not accept him. It will be a bad gesture from Karachi people.
“We developed Punjab, we will build Pakistan on the same lines,”
Dude, your Punjab that starts from Model Town and ends at Raiwind (apart from Motorway) might be developed... come let me show you my Punjab - just an hour from your Raiwind palace - and you show me the "development" amongst the people still using tanga's. Stop harping on freaking Metro Bus stunt! Fix the real Punjab first, Karachi is better off without your "affection".
@Raja Islam: so what the comment is saying that they create security issues for the people and then go back to them and ask for their votes, how circular and inconclusive.
I appreciate the initiative taken by Mr. Shahbaz Shareef but Metro buses are not going to fulfill the ever increasing public transport needs of the city. I think the Metro bus project will be scraped in 5 years due to limited capacity of a typical bus system. However, extending the Karachi circular railway will solve a lot of problems. Moreover a lot of work and money has already been spent on this project and extending this netwrok to major hubs in the city will be quite pragmatic.
@saad: Because incumbent government is not keen to solve the problems in Karachi. You should rather appreciate that prospective CM of Punjab is looking to address the major traffic issue of Karachi.
@Bilal: You are spot on! Great Work!
@Ansari: Karachi collects not pays taxes about 70%. In Pakistan 60-70% of taxes are indirect taxes (i.e. Sales Tax) that is paid on the consumption of goods. And it is Punjab who pays more sales tax because it has a population of over 100 million. Karachi collects more taxes because most of the companies are registered in Karachi and hence taxes are collected are from Karachi. So, it is quite unfair to misguide the people.
@Noman Ansari:
a not insignificant amount of 'your' electricity comes from punjab.
They are playing on what the people want to hear or from what they feel got them votes in Punjab - sadly that is the easiest way to secure more supporters and enhance
foreigntiesWe need a
safecity way before a metro even comes in the picture, we need asafetymechanism from these rogue political parties and their extremist wings. we needsafetyof jobs before people can afford metros, we needno Danish schoolsbut revival of exisitng schools catering to the massessafely, we need asaferroad infrastructure, preferably a secondary route like Lahores ring road that might give reilef to the choked shahrae faisal, maybe asafe` motorway connection before a metro, the list goes on.....some where a metro could be useful if funds remain.more than decade back karachi had metro buses which disappeared after a few months!! how about launching the mass transit system which has been shelved coz of some corrupt and selfish elements? and reviving the circular railway? on the other hand mumbai, hyderabad deccan, benguluru are going to av subway systems soon!! another thing: instead of the bullet train bring the pakistan railways back on track. question: why is the prospective cm of punjab belonging to pml(n) concerned about karachi - to be governed by ppp???
@Adil: Trying to be funny?
Dear Mr. Ansari
We in Punjab really love to see Karachi going to new heights. At the time when it had potential to compete against other major cities in Asia, it was ruined by a political party you are so keen to keep in power. If you are not going to give honest among you a chance to clear the mess, we are going to find/develop other ports in Pakistan and India to trade. As far as your revenue contribution figure is concerned, it is mainly due to multinational and national firms/banks having their head offices in Karachi. Please understand that almost 70% of transactions/trade of any multinational or national firm with HQ in Karachi is with Punjab hinterland. You want punjab to order them all to move to Lahore? Moreover, the GST and other indirect taxes being paid by consumers in Punjab are collected at the stage of import to keep the things simple. Please focus on right things and stop spreading lies. Regards.
Please! Don't Make Commision Base Projects your Top Priority. Thank You
Honestly, the metro bus sounds great and all that, but its on the verge of being a "vanity project" rather than a meaningful one. We dont want buses, we want the people using them to be safe. Their lives should be the priorirty, not the transportation system.
I don't want any fancy projects in Karachi. I want Altaf Bhai back in Karachi. We miss him so much. Karachi has not been the same since he left.
@Tahoor: Your claim that Karachi has the maximum theft of electricity just shows your bias against the city and the residents. If you look at Minister Tasnim Qureshi's report that came out in Mar. this year, you will be shocked to know that Karachi has one of the lowest power theft in the country!! During the past 5 years LESCO lost a total of 2.35 billion!!! as compared to KESCO that lost 90 million during the same period. If you don't believe me then just google the article to see the facts.
@Yousaf Bajwa: yah sharif family we are fief in thier fiefdom
@Adil: we all will actually pass out
@SK: one doesn`t get institutional developement by a pair of brothers with lot of hair on their scalp (happy transplant)
Thanks God, somebody is thinking about Karachi. Shehbaz Sharif should be the Chief Minister of Sindh. Can we borrow him from Punjab for just 2 years?
Karachi is the city where there is maximum theft of electricity. This area should be addressed at top priority if we want to overcome load shedding. This is a free advice for Mr. Shehbaz Sharif.
@Aysha
U put it succinctly but perfectly. 90% of Karachi's ills can be traced to the lack of a single and strong metropolitan government and a police manned by the metropolitan residents themselves. Let Nawaz Sharif, Imran Khan or any other so called national leaders confirm or deny it publicly. No wonder mqm, despite all its shortcomings and waywardness, continue to retain its support in Karachi.
I like it. His positive thinking for the people of Karachi should be appreciated. But I am strange to see the negative comments. What have our politicians of Karachi have given to our city??? If somebody is thinking positively, that should be appreciated and encouraged. If Metro starts in Karachi, who will be the beneficiary? Only people of Karachi. I am sure Shehbaz Sharif will do it. But Shehbaz Sahib, some attention to law and order as well.
@Omer you have to be kidding right! Thanks to Karachi for Paying? What have they paid ever. Got Shame, Got electirc meters?
Only Shehbaz Sharif can do so. I have no hope from politicians of Karachi. They are busy in killing each other's workers. Dear Mr. Shehbaz Sharif, I appreciate for your good gesture for those who do not vote for you. But I request you to please do somethig for law and order too. It is the biggest problem. Allah bless you.
No thanks Mr. Sharif. People of Karachi cannot afford another fire caused by "electric short circuit" in one of our high rise buildings.
All hats off for Shehbaz Sharif. We people do not vote for PML-N in Karachi but he is thinking about Karachi. Its great.I am sure he can do it because he is said to be the best administrator in Punjab. There is no doubt that he has done a lot in Punjab when he was CM Punjab. I am sure he will also deliver in Karachi if he gets such role. I like his commitment.
Appreciated, he will get really popular in KHI if he does something for Non punjab!
But the loadshedding policy seems to be ditto coppied from Asad Umar's interview!
@Ansari, Truth Prevails,
Quoting wikipedia,
Karachi collects 53.38% of the total collections of the Federal Board of Revenue, out of which 53.33% are customs duty and sales tax on imports.[39] (Note: Revenue collected from Karachi includes revenue from some other areas since the Large Tax Unit (LTU) Karachi and Regional Tax Offices (RTOs) Karachi, Hyderabad, Sukkur & Quetta cover the entire province of Sindh and Balochistan).[39] Karachi's indigenous contribution to national revenue is around 25%.
Not trying to understate Karachi's role in Pakistani economy. Karachi no doubt is the financial capital of Pakistan. But we must look in to facts. As stated above, Karachi "collects" 53.38% taxes, not generates it. And out of these collections 53.33% are from customs duty / sales tax in IMPORTS. These imports are for entire country, not just Karachi. So attributing this as Karachi's revenue is incorrect. Karachi's indigenous contribution is 25%, which is still huge!
@Omer "Yeah, and also please say thank you to Karachi for paying for Lahore buses. "
From wikipedia,
"The contribution of Lahore to the national economy is supposed to be around 13.2%" And Lahore's population is about half of Karachi, so the % contribution of Lahore is a little bit higher than Karachi.
Mr Sharif - Would the tender process be as transparent as elections or should I assume all material will be bought from Ittefaq group. Not that there is anything wrong with that.
Having used the Karachi public transport for going to school, college and later university as the sole means of transport, I have seen several great projects fail. Most recent failure was the 'green bus' from Sweden which was launched around 2002 (i guess). While metro bus is a great short term solution but ultimately circular railway is the mega-project that needs to be revived for the huge population of the city and to keep the roads free of traffic jams.
rafiq: Where do you think the budget comes from if not from taxes? Foreign donations? 92% donations and 8% taxes? Think about it... the budget is made entirely of income generated through taxes. The money doesn't descend from heaven...nor is it just printed in the Treasury...
Karachi walo no need to get excited first see the Pros & Cons.....Basically its "Jangla" buss ha (buss route is secured by huge iron "jangla" ).
I lived near metro buss Lahore and traveled once in it .
Advantages: 1) 30-70 billion will be spent on Public infrastructure, very low cost as compared to Circular Railway very low cost of maintenance, you can run any other Chakra buses, especially beneficial of Ambulances, VVIP's 2)That route will become high way means (1 kilometer tk koi crossing nai... 2 ghaty ka rasta aadhy Ghanty ma ) 3) Project will be completed within a year (Job Done! nothing like decades long Program ) 4) Itefaq ka sarya/cement, lagay ga...labor ko rozgar millay ga, Shrief family ky cement shares ki price rize kary gi, in ky contractors ko thaika millay ga....
Disadvantages: jis area ma Jangla Buss banti us area ky business man he behter bta sakty hain k un ky sath kya beeti !
@Ansari: Do you know how Federal Revenue system works???. Also your main resource of info is Wikipedia that is actually another questionable resource of such information . Karachi is like a Hong Kong of Pakistan and all Imports and Exports taxes are deducted at Karachi and that is how revenue is generated there. Similarly all Big Multi Nationals are registered there in KSE and when their taxes are deducted in Karachi then some fools think that is a revenue of Karachi. If from tomorrow Punjab, KPK and Balochistan will make their own Dry Ports rather than tax deduction from Karachi and using Port of Karachi directly and also Provinces will force all companies to make the tax deduction in the Province from where they are reaping profits and generating revenue then all figures will be totally different. Punjab Contributes more than 60 percent in all aspects as the Main Agriculture and Cotton yield along with Textiles is produced in Punjab. Agri Sector is around 23 Percent of GDP and Textile is another 20 percent. Similarly heavy and small and medium scale engineering firms are mostly registered in Punjab. These two sectors of Punjab alone contributes more than 40 percent alone and if KSE registered companies will be registered in Provinces likewise for Tax deduction then these figures will shoot up Considerably.
It is the people who decide their fate.
The people of Karachi who have been commenting here do not realize that Karachi is what they have made it. It is their leaders whom they chose and the governments they vote to power which lead them to their disappointment.
Then they become helpless and backlash at everything alien to them.
Karachi seriously needs attention from "outside" to help it improve and progress.
For many decades we people of Pakistan have witnessed what the people of Karachi or Sindh could not do for the city of lights. Hence parties like PTI and PML(N) want to come to the rescue.
If the people of Karachi dont grow up ,it will be Pakistan's loss , not just theirs.
@Ansari: Karachi contributed 54% of total Federal Revenue!!!
federal revenue are just the 8 or nine % of the budget check ur records.
Shahbaz sharif! Do it and ill vote for you!!!
@Ansari: but all the taxes are only 8 - 9 % of the total budget of the country am i right??
@Aysha: The biggest need that Karachi has is safety and security. Unfortunately this will not come from the elected representatives as they are the ones who are responsible for creating this unsafe situation in the city.
@linchpin: You got it right buddy. Keep it up.
@Aysha: Yeah, but Karachi is also under the Federation of Pakistan and Shahbaz is talking from the angle of his enjoying much power in the Center, as he is an important leader of the PML-N which is going to govern Pakistan. I don't see why the Federation cannot start projects in Karachi, which it might deem helpful or necessary. Besides, the Federation also has the right to take measures directly, through the Provincial Government, and the Local Government to stop lawlessness in the metropolis. No single entity owns Karachi.
@Aysha: they gonna ask for a weapon factory in the city cause its costly to buy it from india init
I think most of the comments here are by people who have air-conditioned cars. They have never needed to use public transport.
Yes, Karachi needs a circular railway and a metro system and much, much more. Karachi's public transport i pathetic and has been for 40 years.
Any dynamic city needs a robust transport system comprising of several elements. Just look at cities like Jakarta, Bangkok, Cairo, Kuala Lumpur or Istanbul..they are miles ahead of Karachi. Even Cities in Pakistan and India are miles ahead of Karachi.
I don't think it is a question of law and order or transport or electricity and transport...why are your ambitions so low?
Karachi needs law and order, electricity, transport, health and education. All of the above not one of the above. If politicians can't deliver at least some progress on all of the above then vote them out!
what about 2rs ke roti and laptop scheme ...karachi need that as well
so first came the 'yellow' cabs, then came the 'green' cng buses, now comes the promise for 'red' buses............. bus bhi karo, itni toh sarkein nahin hai, jitni gariyan nikaal rahe ho khi mein .......... it would be better to revamp the education & vocational training for entire Pakistan.
What visionary leader he is, hats off!
Metro Bus is OK, but the top priority item for Karachi is LAW & ORDER, period end of story!
Yeah, and also please say thank you to Karachi for paying for Lahore buses.
Truth_Prevails: Get your own facts right! According to the Federal Board of Revenue year book 2006-07, Karachi contributed 54% of total Federal Revenue!!! That's more than half from one city and it certainly isn't in Punjab. If you cannot look up anywhere else, look up Wikipedia. Privately calculated figures of 2012-13 are much higher by at least 15%. Not even the government recognizes such a contribution of Punjab's. Respect Karachi for its hard work and immense contribution to Pakistan's federal budget. Punjab may be making lots of money, but its certainly not going into taxes....thanks to the example set by the Sharifs.
What's with Mr Shahbaz and the metro buses? Please spare us of this project and instead work on electricity generation and lowering the crime rate.
We need Education, Deweaponization, Improved and Accessible Health Facilities and other basic amenities in Karachi more than any metro bus, Sir!
We need electricity more than these buses...
This might be a good development in Karachi as there are many problems of traffic in Karachi those who go to offices, schools and other institutions get hard time traveling in local buses. So this is a nice step if they can really achieve it.
@Ansari: Get your facts correct Bro. Punjab Province contributes around 58-60% of the GDP while Sindh is aorund 27-29%. The remaining comes from other provinces. Its normal to support a party of your choice but its misleading / unprofessional / cheating to spread misinformation.
city government + local policing = peace in Karachi Mr. Sharif willing to committ and contribute to this equation
Local government + local policing = peace in Karachi
Ask for security from people you have been voting all your life........
my request to Sharif family.
Congrats for the win. Please stop building roads and metros for two years and start investing on dams, schools and law n order....Roads can be made later...thank you
Mr. Shahbaz Sharif. You have got your priorities wrong. Karachi doesn't need a metro bus. What it needs is security and enforcement of law. That should be your first priority
Karachi has his own priorities.
There is a long list and Metro Bus comes in the last of the list.
What about Circular Railways. Initiate that coupled with your Metro Bus scheme.
But....will the transport mafia of Karachi allow this? So before all this, bring peace to Karachi.
just give us Peace & don't take our electricity we are happy without metro bus, once karachi is back on peace private investors will build such mega projects. if you want to give us such cosmetic projects then please build Khi-Hyd Motorway
@Adil: Don't forget the U turns.
If you do big mega projects for Karachi we will vote you next time! this the time to do something for Karachi but no more operations. Thanks
just give us peace , nothing else needed
Just give us undisturbed electricity and a good law and order environment. We don't want this Metro Bus!
Isnt this interference in another province's affairs. In any case, this only reflects a highly simplistic thinking and nothing to do with the real concrete issues of Karachi. It will be a day when either of the brothers talk about institutional improvements.
Please reconcile with Altaf Bhai in the larger interest of the country and bring peace and development in not only Karachi but also in other parts of the country.
Please also assign your priority to development of tourism in northern areas of the country that will certainly help eliminating unemployment, increase in trade, foreign exchange and other areas including extremism and terrorism.
Ask for security from people you voted in karachi.....
Great now we will have Overpass, Underpass, Bypass, Left Pass, Right Pass, and every pass in Karachi. In the end we will all Pass.
I can't believe all these comments! Of course we need good public transportation in Karachi! It is the need of the hour. But we've been disappointed before by talk of CNG buses and what not so let's wait and see what happens on the ground.
I think that instead of complaining and asking for more in a very short period of time, we should learn to appreciate what the Shareefs are willing to do for Karachi. Electricity generation and cleansing of militancy from the city is going to be a long-term project, which may take over ten years(two tenures of governments) to accomplish. This is a positive and firm step toward further development of the most industrialised and the largest sea-port of the country. I am thinking a Motorway all the way from Karachi, through important centres in Sind and up to Lahore; for later, it may as-well grow into Balochistan. What a boost to Pakistani trade,economy and currency it will be. Go go Shareefs!
Shahbaz Sharif, Karachi generates about 75% of federal govt. revenue. You're not doing us any favors..if you invest our money back into our city. Pay your taxes first and make your contributions to the revenue. Its about time people like yourself stop evading taxes!
He has not sworn in BUT he will definitely do.
And here...we...go!
Even if you want to do something in transport sector, its not the metro bus we need. Fund the KCR project!!
One solution fits all. A dilemma facing the people of Karachi as to its decision makers are not local. Hence, a decision taken in haste and in TAKHT E LAHORE is bound to fail because Karachi is not Lahore, dear: Khadim E Aala of Punjab.
Karachi badly needs a Mass transit system, It is the only mega city in the world without an organised mass transit system. Metro Bus is the cheapest and quickest solution. Great initiative.
Before Mr. Shareef embarks on any such frivolous idea, it would be best to consult with the elected representative of the city. They are the ones who can better identify the needs of the city. He should just facilitate what is deemed important and necessary by the elected representative. If he has genuine interest of the city at heart, he should support local body elections and empowerment of those who get elected. They will look after the citizens and the city.The gesture is very much appreciated
BRTS is a nice project but pml(n) should also focus on metro trains in lahore, isb and khi! @ET; shehbaz sharif is a 'former chief minister' not a 'former minister' i guess!
Oh Lord, spare us please.
Karachi already has a Circular Railway upgrading and modernization project in the pipeline that is funded by Japan. That should take priority as much work has been done in this regard. There will be very little mess related with this project.
how about providing us with the basics first...like i dont know ..law and order
i went to karachi last year ... public transport there was worst ... Karachits deserve to have RBTS !!
I really don’t think if Karachi needs these cosmetic projects, if Mr Sharif really wants to conquer hearts of Karachiites he just need to De-weaponize the city….
Well said Sir! Thats what I was observing since long. We are so called urdu speaking, and respect your words. You have build Punjab! no doubt! Now you have a chance again to build Pakistan!. Comply your promises, I assure then my vote will be yours in elections!
Can we please have security/deweaponization as top priority for Karachi instead of Metro bus?
In what capacity he's making those promises? he hasn't sworn in at any public office yet! he didn't win from Karachi, or even from Sindh.
Just don't take our electricity. We are fine.
We don't need metro buses. We need the Karachi Circular Railway.
Mr Shahbaz sharif we dont want metro bus right now we need law & order in karachi that should be your priority
You do that and i will vote for you in the next elecition