October 17, 2006	Tuesday	Ramazan 23, 1427

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ISLAMABAD, Oct 16: Speakers at a discussion on Monday urged the government to revoke the deal for sale of ecologically significant islands near DHA, Karachi, under the control of Port Qasim Authority to a UAE based real estate giant.

The discussion, organised by Sungi, in collaboration with Pakistan Mahigeer Tehrik, was on privatization of two islands on the Karachi coast. The participants said the dubious deal had no legal footing as the Port Qasim Authority had got the land on lease from the provincial government for port activities and the same could not be sold out for commercial activity.

They said the two Islands of Sindh, Buddo (Dingi) and Bundal (Bundaar), have been sold out under calendestine deal to construct a new city and claimed that even the Sindh Chief Minister had not been consulted and nobody in Sindh government knew about the deal.

They said the Sindh government had surrendered to the decision of the Federal Government and Sindh Cabinet supported the project on October 3.

Engineer Naseer Memon from Karachi, in his presentation said a model city spread over 12,000 acres comprising 15,000 housing units along with a number of commercial plazas, leisure points, industrial parks, free trade zone and port terminals would be built, besides a 1.5 km long bridge to connect new city with Defence Phase-8 costing a hefty sum of US$ 50 million. He said the islands had been included in High Priority Areas of Pakistan by IUCN.

He said the sale of islands would deprive local fishermen of their livelihood, directly and indirectly, affecting some half a million people as local small fishermen would lose their vital passages to open sea through Korangi and Phitti creeks. Naseer Memon said the islands were located at the western end of the Sindh Coastal Zone bordered by Korangi, Phitti and Jhari creeks.

Bundal Island was one of the biggest and highest of all the islands along the Sindh coast, with a length of about 8-km. The width of the island varies - it is about 4 km wide in the north and 1 km in the south.

The Island was the breeding ground of green turtles. The sandy beaches—the east coast of Karachi—of these islands are the only areas where the endangered green turtles visit for breeding purposes. The area lies along the Indus Flyway and as such serves as an important breeding, roosting and feeding ground for migratory and resident bird species.

The migratory birds include pelicans, flamingos, cranes and resident species comprise herons, waders, terns, egrets, kites etc.

Bundal Island is experiencing constant wave erosion due to frontage of sea. The frequency of waves approaching the island is 10 to 14 per minute resulting in extensive erosion.

He said the deal will potentially restrict the movement of more than 4,000 fishing boats of Thatta and Karachi coast into deep sea thus loosing the remaining fishing grounds located near mangroves along the islands.

Karachi coast would be deprived of rich mangroves nurseries and cyclone barriers in the shape of sand dunes and mangrove forests. Poor fishermen of the area would lose their sojourn places. Local fishermen would also lose a place of cultural importance i.e. shrine of Yousif Shah, located on Bundaar.

Discussants were of the view that a country-wide campaign should be launched to prevent the deal which they stressed was against the interests of the country. “What was being done in the name of development must be opposed with full force”.

One of the discussants pointed out that provincial autonomy was one of the seven-point agenda spelt out by President General Pervez Musharraf after coming into power. He, however, said the deal was in negation of the promise. The Emaar Group which has purchased the islands would invest about $43 billion (about Rs2,600 billion) over next 13 to 16 years.

The group having presence in about 20 countries including Saudi Arabia, UAE, India, Egypt, Turkey, Morocco, Syria, Pakistan and Tunisia earned net profit of Rs75 billion during first nine months of 2006.