KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has asked the Pakistan Railways to hand over right of way to the Sindh government within next 15 days so that international tenders could be invited to start the Karachi Circular Railway.

The chief minister said that the provincial government was ready to launch Karachi Circular Railway (KCR) for which he had been holding meetings in China and Islamabad and got it approved from the CPEC-related Joint Coordination Committee meeting.

“Now, the federal government has to approve it and give its sovereign guarantee as a feasibility study has already been done.”

The chief minister, who was presiding over a meeting here at CM House on Wednesday, directed the transport department to write a letter to the Railways authorities with the request to remove encroachments from the right of way and transfer the same to the provincial government.

The meeting participants decided that notices be issued to the illegal allottees of Kidney Hill and Hill Park areas for appearing before the Supreme Court’s Karachi registry.

The commissioner of Karachi told the chief minister that the hockey ground of the YMC had been restored and now hockey was being played there.

The chief minister directed the commissioner of Karachi to remove encroachments from footpaths around the Metropole Hotel.

The commissioner said that he had cleared some portions of the footpaths and the portion of Village Restaurant at the corner of the Metropole Hotel would be cleared within next 24 hours.

The commissioner also told the chief minister that the Aladdin Park office area had been sealed and a report in this regard would be sent to the Supreme Court.

The chief minister directed the commissioner to monitor cleanliness work of the Sindh Solid Waste Management Authority in districts South, East, Malir and West.

The cleanliness of the city was his top priority, he added.

“We have outsourced sweeping work, therefore it must be monitored,” he said.

The chief minister directed MD of water board Asadullah Khan to ensure proper water supply in the city during Ramazan.

Those who attended the meeting include Local Government Minister Saeed Ghani, Adviser to CM Murtaza Wahab, Chief Secretary Mumtaz Shah, principal secretary to CM Sajid Jamal Abro, home secretary Kazi Kabir, Commissioner of Karachi Iftikhar Shallwani, secretary of local government Khalid Hyder Shah, KWSB MD Asadullah, DG KDA, DG SBCA and representatives of the transport department.

Published in Dawn, May 16th, 2019