KARACHI, Nov 3: Sindh Chief Minister Dr Arbab Ghulam Rahim has constituted an advisory committee to look after the affairs and management of new Sabzimandi on Superhighway in the wake of growing complaints of corrupt practices, mismanagement, fake allotments, encroachment and decline of recoveries since the market was shifted from its old location on University Road to Superhighway in 2000.
The advisory committee consists of representatives of different welfare associations of the stake-holders. They are: Haji Mohammad Jawaid, Malik Mahfooz, Aijaz Ali Khuwaja, Abdul Rauf Tanoli and Abdul Shakoor Memon
Governor Dr Ishratul Ibad, who was approached by stakeholders, had also shown interest in improving its working and had issued necessary directives for removal of bottlenecks in clearing the mess from the model sabzimandi project conceived and financed by the Asian Development Bank.
The committee, comprising six members, would take measures to remove encroachments, improve sanitary conditions, check pilferage of funds and fees collection and regulate supply of electricity.
In the terms of reference, the administrator of the market committee had been asked to seek their concurrence in financial as well as administrative day-to-day issues.
It is learnt that soon after its notification by the secretary of agriculture Nazar Hussain Mahar, the AC was able to sort out hovering threat of power disconnection.
The market committee has now agreed to pay outstanding dues of power charges to the Karachi Electric Supply Corporation while after installation of power meters in the shops, recurring KESC bills would be paid by the allottees.
This agreement was reached between stake-holders represented by the AC and the secretary of agriculture. The KESC had threatened to disconnect power supply to the mandi if its dues of Rs 50 million were not cleared immediately.
In the absence of the approved plan, the objective of setting up a new fruit and vegetable market was blocked due to unabated encroachment on every open space under political influence and financial interests of corrupt bureaucrats.
Now it is learnt that the market committee has got its master plan approved in February last from the KBCA in which 3,760 shops were shown although at present the number of shops has doubled due to fake allotments given to encroachers.
It is also learnt that individual allottees had applied for approval of their proposed shop building plans in accordance with the master plan and the KBCA had also approved some of the plans while others were still under scrutiny.
According to the record, the KMC tenants used to be only 2,356, including 1598 in the vegetable section and 578 in the fruit section.
After the shifting of the mandi to its present location, Pak army issued 1,356 allotments, 367 by Col Javed, 79 by Abdul Jabbar Abbasi and 84 by Akbar Zardari administrator.
Those given possession of plots had deposited over Rs 90 million on various counts but were facing scarcity of water, insanitary condition, uneven roads and encroachments.
