KARACHI, Feb 15: The garbage lifting in Karachi and its disposal was on Wednesday privatized while city’s entire solid waste management system will be privatized phased-wise in a period of one year.

A number of foreign companies have exhibited extraordinary interest and privatization of this system will help increase city government’s revenues.

This was stated by City Nazim Syed Mustafa Kamal while speaking at the signing of an agreement for privatization of garbage disposal system at the Civic Centre here on Wednesday.

The town municipal officers concerned inked agreements with private contractors in the presence of the city nazim, DCO Fazlur Rehman and town nazims.

Mustafa Kamal pointed that these issues had been pending for the last 55 years for which no machinery but only decision-making was required.

“We resolved the genuine problems of town administrations and took a decision just in two months and resolved the issue”.

“We believe in service and not politics and will take up only constructive works”.

He said: “There is no opposition when it is the question of constructive work and we all will work together with all towns and city government working as a team.”

Mustafa Kamal said that bad sanitary conditions in Karachi are a major hurdle in the way of foreign investment and recently major investment agreement was abrogated only because a survey team had reported that there are garbage dumps lying in Karachi.

He said such a situation is not acceptable in a civilized city which is regarded as country’s economic engine.

He pointed out that sanitation and cleanliness is not the city government’s direct responsibility and it was quite easy for it to say that removing garbage is not our duty.

“But this is our city and we have to work for it together. We have resolved the issues of towns and are cooperating with them so that Karachi could become a clean city”.

The city nazim said the private contractors would pay salaries to city government staff and pay rental for our vehicles and machinery.

He explained that the city government would have big saving in fuel cost and other heads while contractor would be paid on per ton basis with garbage to be weighed at landfill site.

He informed that presently only 4,000 tonnes of garbage is being lifted, out of 7,000 tonnes generated and it will be a big success if 100 per cent garbage is lifted with a nominal increase in expenditure.

He said that both landfill sites have been privatized and condition there are also being improved.

As regards the landfill sites, Mustafa Kamal said that people have put up hutments there and they get a truck of garbage off-loaded in front of their hut after paying Rs50 to the driver and then they sift out useful things from the dump.

He said a solid waste management plan is being prepared for which major world companies, including American, Malaysian and Germans, are contacting us.

He, however, said that the city government would establish a system of solid waste management which is in operation in other major world cities which would help generate billions of rupees revenue for the city government.

He said privatization of garbage lifting system is the start of work towards this direction and in the first phase, steps are being taken to make Karachi a completely clean city.—APP