KARACHI: Sind Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has said that the federal government was passing the buck of shortage of natural gas to the province only to hide its lack of their planning and failure to foresee the situation.

He said this while speaking at the inauguration ceremony of four development schemes on Monday.

The chief minister said that he was surprised to know that a federal minister was holding the Sindh government responsible for the shortage of gas in Sindh.

“Our government’s stance is very clear for implementation of Article 158 of the Constitution in letter and spirit,” he said. “We want you to meet the gas requirement of Sindh first and then distribute the remaining gas wherever it is needed. We won’t allow you to take away gas being produced from Sindh and force us to purchase LNG.”

Mr Shah said that he had been very clear from the first day that the provincial government would not purchase LNG for its domestic or industrial consumers but: “we would use the gas we are producing and if you need gas you can purchase LNG”.

Says Bilawal will become prime minister in 2020

Talking about Karachi, the chief minister said that the Sindh government had always given importance to the people of Karachi.

He said that 2019 was about to end and in 2020 PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari would be the prime minister of the country.

Addressing Mr Bhutto-Zardari, the CM said that the gathering was organised in Korangi to inaugurate seven recently completed projects.

Apart from road infrastructure, he said the Sindh government was investing heavily in other sectors such as water supply and sewerage improvement projects and firefighting and disaster management.

Talking about water projects, Mr Shah said that the schemes included upgrade of Pipri filter plant, laying of water lines for Orangi-Baldia Town, improvement and replacement of all water and sewerage system.

He also informed the gathering about procurement of a 104-metre-high snorkel for Karachi and 10 fire-fighting machines.

The chief minister said that in addition to the water and disaster management schemes, the Sindh government was offering huge funding to the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation and district municipal corporations through their share for the upkeep of the infrastructure.

The CM said that the Sindh government’s overall vision of making Karachi a competitive and livable city was investing hugely in collaboration with international donor agencies and local partners in the public-private partnership (PPP) mode.

He said the $105 million Karachi Water and Sewerage Services Improvement Project had been launched. The components of the project include complete rehabilitation of existing water and sewerage networks, rehabilitation of filtration plants, rehabilitation of water sewerage pumping stations, construction of new sewerage treatment plants and enhancement of bulk water supply of existing quota from the Indus source (130 MGD).

He said that a four-Lane 38.5-kilometre-long dual carriageway project from the KPT flyover up to Kathore was also being launched.

Mr Shah said this project was being undertaken under the PPP mode and next month it would be launched.

About the Red Line bus rapid transit system project, he said that it was also being launched from Model Colony to Saddar up to Tower.

Mr Shah said that his government in collaboration with the Asian Development Bank had also started a project of Red Line BRTS for which the implementation would commence within next two months.

The chief minister said that the Yellow Line project was being launched from Korangi to Numaish.

He added that the World Bank was supporting his government in construction of the Yellow Line.

Published in Dawn, December 31st, 2019