January 24, 2008	Thursday	Muharram 14, 1429

KARACHI, Jan 23: Fireworks are scheduled at the City Council which is to meet on Saturday about six weeks after it witnessed acrimonious scenes and a boycott by the opposition benches on the question of the city’s master plan and certain other matters.

In the previous session, held on Dec 15, the opposition had lodged its strong protest over not being consulted when the master plan was being drafted and finalised which they maintained had many flaws.

In the Saturday session, convened by Naib City Nazim Ms Nasreen Jalil, the house will discuss a six-point agenda chalked out by the treasury benches. Though the agenda mostly contains normal routine matters, the opposition is likely to press for taking up certain other issues.

An opposition leader, when contacted, said it was time to discuss matters like upgrading of services, conversion of plots’ status, etc. He said there were many more important issues the opposition would try to raise. However, he did not specify any of such issues.

The issues on the agenda are creation of health cadres, extension of Shaheed-i-Millat Road, promotion of the engineers associated with the CDGK’s works and services department from grade 17 to 18, change in land use of a plot in Gulshan-i-Iqbal and a 50 per cent cut in the rent of shopping centres, markets, godowns, stalls and offices managed by the city government.