KARACHI: Taking notice of media reports after mounting criticism of the gaping gutters and potholes in the metropolis, Sindh Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah has ordered local administration to take immediate action in order to improve the state of Karachi roads, his spokesman said Wednesday.

"Is sealing gutters also my job?" an infuriated Shah asked his administration after a group of Karachi citizens took the unconventional approach of painting the chief minister's face near gutters and piles of heap on major roads of the city in a bid to attract his attention.

Sources in the provincial government said the Sindh CM lambasted the secretary of local government as well as Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) officials for the poor state of Karachi roads.

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The chief minister ordered the local administration to cover all manholes in the city within two days "or face strict action", they said.

He expressed displeasure that despite getting extra funds besides the budget, KMC had not been able to maintain roads.

Shah warned that a Chief Minister's Inspection Team will tour roads in Karachi after two days for inspection, and will submit to a him a report on the action taken by local authorities to level roads.

As part of the Ideas are Bulletproof campaign, a group of Karachi citizens this past week spray-painted the portrait of Sindh CM on major roads of the metropolis, which invoke the ire of thousands everyday due to their derelict condition.

With the chief minister's face drawn next to gaping potholes, ditches and heaps of piles on the side of Karachi's much-travelled University Road, the aim of the project was to attract the authorities attention towards the issues that affect the common man in the city, Alamgir Khan, who led the campaign, earlier told Dawn.com.