KARACHI: N. Nazimabad to have three pedestrian bridges soon
By Our Staff Reporter
KARACHI, March 16: Work on construction of three pedestrian bridges over the main and busy roads of North Nazimabad Town will begin in two weeks, the Town Nazim, Mumtaz Hameed, said on Thursday.
He was briefing newsmen about the town’s development plans and measures taken so far for retrieving amenity plots from encroachers and the land mafia. The town’s Naib Nazim, Ehsanullah Khan, and TMO Mehmood Hassan were also present.
Unfolding details of the pedestrian bridges, the town nazim said the 20-ft high bridges, each costing Rs10 million, would be built at the Golden Gate restaurant near the Board of Secondary Education, Farooq-i-Azam Masjid adjacent to 2-K bus stop, and in Shadman Town near the Rose Garden Restaurant.
With the construction of all three pedestrian bridges, not only will the general public and students, especially those visiting the Board of Secondary Education and nearby
educational institutions, face any difficulties in crossing busy roads, but the number of accidents at these thoroughfares will also come to an end, he hoped.
He said with a view to providing relief to the handicapped and elderly people, all three brides will have ramps besides a special ramp in the pedestrian bridge to be built near Farooq-i-Azam Masjid.
Three firms – Gujrat Steel, the United Construction and Almeda Road Advertising – have already been qualified for constructing the bridges on built-operate-and transfer basis. The firms will recover the cost of the bridges in 12 years through advertisements.
HYDRANT: Agreeing with newsmen that the Sakhi Hassan Hydrant had become a source of accidents and extensive damage to nearby roads, Mr Hameed said he would take up the issue of its shifting with the city nazim.
He said neither were the town’s residents benefiting from the hydrant nor were those operating it giving any money to the town for repair or construction of roads, he supplemented his reply.
To another query, he said he would ask the KWSB to shift its huge pumping machines from 5-Star traffic intersection. Their presence in the mid of the busy intersection, he said usually blocked the vision of motorists coming from either sides.
Referring to the town’s campaign aimed at retrieving amenity plots from encroachers, he said just recently, over 200 huts and the Hyderi police station, which were illegally built on a huge plot in North Nazimabad’s Block-G were removed. He said the same plot would now shortly be turned into a grand gymkhana.
Besides, a park in Block B had also been retrieved from encroachers, the town nazim said.
In addition, around 10 rent-a-motorcycle stands had been smashed following receiving complaints that most of the people hiring the motorcycles were indulging in crimes, he said.
About the uplift plans, he said each of the 10 union councils of the town had been given Rs0.7 million for undertaking repair and patch works of streets.
Moreover, the town was installing 200 sodium lights on all double-track link roads, he added.
To a question, he said it was for the first time in the last 24 years that the town administration had disallowed setting up of stalls in the periphery of Hyderi Market during Eid days in which over Rs0.7 bribe was involved.
Such stall were not only creating hindrances in the smooth flow of traffic but were causing inconvenience to shoppers as well, he added.
