KARACHI: Hill Park, which stretches over 65 acres, was finally cleared of all illegal and unauthorised structures, including restaurants and shops, by the city’s municipal administration on Friday.

Officials and witnesses said the anti-encroachment staff of the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation launched the operation in the morning demolishing over 50 illegal structures raised on 20 acres, worth about Rs50 billion.

They said that the removed structures inclu­ded Dua Restaurant, Eman Restaurant, Ashi Restau­rant, Three Queen Restau­rant, Oasis Restaurant, Mairaj Amusement Park, Oasis Marriage Garden, Mini Golf Club, Golf Club Marriage Hall and the illegal boundary wall.

The officials said that an office of the Citizens-Police Liaison Committee (CPLC) located in the parking area of the park was also taken by the park management into its use and it was made office of the deputy director of Hill Park.

Metropolitan Com­missioner Dr Syed Saif-ur-Rehman, who personally monitored the action to recover the land, told Dawn that Hill Park had now been completely cleared of encroachments under the directive of the Supreme Court.

“The KMC will remove all encroachments from parks, drains, footpaths and amenity plots,” he said.

The metropolitan commissioner said that Hill Park was established in 1965 on 65 acres of hilly land which had been encroached upon by land grabbers to utilise the area for commercial activities.

He said that four teams of the anti-encroachment dep­art­ment were involved in the operation.

Published in Dawn, January 19th, 2019