KARACHI: Local govt system legally protected: official
KARACHI, July 28: The City District Government Karachi is the only institution where resolutions adopted by the local council since 1960 were preserved in its archives.City Council’s Senior Presiding Officer Masud Mehmud told a delegation of town and taluka nazims and naib nazims from various parts of the country who visited City Naib Nazim’s Secretariat here on Friday.
The delegation was led by Municipal Training and Research Institute’s (MTRI) Principal Mohammad Afzal Arain. Members of the delegation are on a training visit to Karachi under the MTRI.
Masud Mehmud said that the current local body system had unprecedented constitutional safeguards, adding that the system’s three tiers had the status of local government under the Local Government Ordinance 2001 and were functioning under the Constitution. He said that unlike the past, present local government system enjoyed adequate legal protection.
He informed the delegates that Karachi generated maximum revenue for the country, but did not get its rightful share.
He said the city had been without a master plan when the present leadership assumed charge, adding that it was revealed that water and sewerage lines were lying in haphazard manner.
He said that City Nazim Mustafa Kamal had provided Rs50 million to every town to revamp sewerage lines.
Referring to Karachi’s lcoal body history, Mr Mehmud said that a Conservancy Board was formed in 1846 and a local government system, constituted under the Imperial Act in 1850, had been working during different periods under different laws.
The Imperial Act of 1850 was initially followed by four cities -- Madras, Calcutta, Bombay and Karachi. In September 1852, municipality was formed in Karachi.
In 1979, the city had 145 constituencies called panchayats, which were increased to 202 in 1983. In 1987, two-tier local body system was created for the first time. At that time Karachi comprised of four districts.
Copies of all laws dating back to 1850 were preserved in the present City Council.
Later, the delegation visited City Council Hall where the District Officer (Council) informed its members about the City Council building (old KMC Building) that on December 14, 1895 municipality building foundation was laid by the then Bombay Governor at somewhere else.
The building was designed by James C. Wyunes of Edinburgh and its initial construction was supervised by the then municipality’s chief engineer while its structure was completed by Jehangir & Sons on Nov 5, 1927. The building’s construction was completed on Dec 31, 1930 at a cost of Rs1.775 million and it was inaugurated on Jan 7, 1932.
August 25, 1947 was a monumental day in the building’s history, when Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah visited it. Several local and international leaders had so far visited this building.—PPI
