KARACHI: Commercialization policy ready for debate, approval
KARACHI Oct 16: Commercialization policy of the city government which is lying abandoned for the last few years, has been finalized and would be presented in the next session of the City Council of CDGK expected to be held later in this month for an approval.
Six major thoroughfares of the city would be commercialized in the first phase after approval of the policy. In the next phase, 13 other major roads would be considered for commercialization.
The roads planned to be commercialized in the first phase include Sharea Faisal (from Hotel Metropol to Malir Bridge), Main Tariq Road (up to Bahadurabad), the commercial area of Sindhi Muslim Society up to Sharea Faisal, Rashid Minhas Road Scheme No. 16 and 36, University Road Scheme No. 24 and 36, Shahrah-i-Pakistan (Teen Hatti bridge to Scheme No. 16), Nazimabad A Road, left side of the main road leading to Paposh Nagar.
The plan was first approved by the provincial government in 1998 when it had given approval to the ‘change of land use’ and issued a notification in this regard. However, the governing body of the now defunct KDA kept the decision in abeyance for unknown reason.
One reason for the non-implementation of the notification was high conversion rates, sources in the city government pointed out and said that the KDA move caused delay in the implementation of the whole plan.
Following the dissolution of the KDA governing body with the introduction of devolution plan and the resultant inception of the city government in 2001, a 23-member committee was constituted by the City Council to look into the matter.
The city government’s law department was also consulted for its opinion on the KDA decision. Terming the KDA governing body’s move ‘wrong’, the law department suggested that it should be reviewed.
The City Council accordingly recommended that a policy should be chalked out for the commercialization of all the roads falling in the jurisdiction of the City District Government Karachi and directed its committee to undertake a survey in this connection.
The committee’s recommendations have been incorporated in the draft commercialization policy.
One of the recommendations pertained to reduction in the conversion rates which appeared very high as pointed out by elected representatives and other people during the committee’s meetings and public hearings held last month. It has also been recommended that the city be divided in eight zones, instead of six as had been proposed earlier.
Well informed sources in the city government said that the final draft would be sent to the City Council for a debate. They hoped that the draft would be approved.—PPI
