KARACHI: The Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) will develop the 62-acre Kidney Hill Park (Ahmed Ali Park) in KDA Scheme No. 32 under the directive of the Supreme Court and the foundation laying of the park will be carried out after removal of encroachments from the land of the park.

Official sources said on Monday that this was decided in a meeting chaired by Karachi Mayor Wasim Akhtar and attended by Deputy Mayor Syed Arshad Hasan and Metropolitan Commissioner Dr Syed Saif-ur-Rehman and senior officials of the municipal administration.

They said the meeting also reviewed the anti-encroachment action in the city under the directive of the Supreme Court and decided to initiate a major action to remove all commercial and welfare activities from the city’s footpaths and edges of main roads.

The sources said the participants of the meeting were informed that five illegal bungalows were constructed in Hill Park besides other encroachments.

They said that notices would be issued to the illegal occupants of the parkland after marking the space and they would be directed to vacate the extended portion of their houses or those would be demolished by the anti-encroachment staff.

Talking to Dawn, the mayor said Hill Park would be made the “best” park of the city.

He said the anti-encroachment action was continuing in Gulshan-i-Iqbal, Hasan Square, Gulistan-i-Jauhar, North Nazimabad and other places in the city where all restaurant owners were warned to remove all their stuff from the pavements and roads or those would be seized by the anti-encroachment department.

Meanwhile, various transfers and postings of officers were made in the KMC on administrative ground for smooth working with immediate effect.

Sabah-ul-Islam, presently working as senior director of Katchi Abadis, KMC, was relieved from his charge and directed to report to the HRM department, KMC. Mazhar Khan has been transferred and posted in his place as senior director.

Fareed Tajik has been transferred and posted as director store and procurement, F&A, KMC. Syed Tasneem Ahmed was relieved from his post as senior director of estate, KMC, and has been directed to report to the Metropolitan Commissioner Secretariat, KMC, while Imran Qadeer has been posted as senior director of estate, KMC, as a stop-gap arrangement.

Published in Dawn, May 21st, 2019