KARACHI: The Sindh Assembly was informed on Monday that the Sindh Local Government Act-2013 (SLGA) was not similar to the Sindh Local Government Ordinance-1979 (SLGO) that was promulgated under the martial law of General Ziaul Haq.

While furnishing statement and replying to the queries of the lawmakers during Question Hour in the provincial assembly, Local Government Minister Saeed Ghani said there was much difference in the SLGO-1979 and SLGA-2013.

Arif Mustafa Jatoi, a member of opposition’s Grand Democratic Alliance, had asked if the SLGO of the martial law regime and the current SLGA were similar laws.

The minister said the country was being run under martial law regime in 1979 and the SLGO dated July 25, 1979 was promulgated by then Sindh Governor Lt-Gen S.M. Abbasi.

“The ordinance of 1979 and the SLGA-2013 are not having similarity in language and provisions,” he said, adding that there was much difference in the two laws.

Answering another question asked by Mr Jatoi, the LG minister said that temporary permission was accorded to M/s Arabian Nights in Clifton for keeping electric generator and night sitting on the municipal land in the limits of the District Municipal Corporation (South) for five years in July last year.

However, he said, the permission had been cancelled by the DMC South municipal commissioner and the site in question was clear from all types of encroachments.

In reply to a written question by Mr Jatoi, the minister said the proposed building plan of the US Consulate on plots No. 3, 4 and 5, New TPX Area, at Mai Kolachi Road, was approved by the then Karachi Building Control Authority on April 24, 2008.

To a supplementary question, he said he did not have details regarding the extended boundary walls around the consulate and said that permission to the foreign missions for erecting such walls were given for security reasons.

In reply to a question asked by Jamaluddin Siddiqui, Mr Ghani said sanitation was a very challenging job as generation of solid waste was a continuous process.

‘Solid waste management yielding results’

He said that new system of the Sindh Solid Waste Management Board had started yielding positive results. Around 700 tonnes of garbage was generated in Jamshed Town zone on a daily basis and the board through its Chinese contractor Changyi Kangjie had deployed staff and machinery for lifting of the garbage.

“Besides, the contracting company has provided mini-trippers/rickshaws for collection of garbage from narrow lanes,” he said, adding that the number of garbage-collecting vehicles was being increased to improve the sanitation conditions of Jamshed Town.

He also said that manual sweeping of the main road and streets was being carried out daily while lanes were swept on alternate days.

To a question, the minister said that as many as 156 pumping stations were working under the administrative control of the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board.

To a supplementary question, he said that more pumping stations would be established in the city if needed. He said that the present number of pumping stations was, however, sufficient.

In reply to another supplementary question, Mr Ghani said that around 500 to 550 million gallons water was being supplied to the city daily.

Published in Dawn, July 16th, 2019