KARACHI: People living along both sides of the Karachi Circular Railway (KCR) tracks may heave a sigh of relief at least for the time being as authorities have decided not to demolish any human settlement along the rail track before completion of operational work, it emerged on Saturday.

Informed sources told Dawn that it was decided in a high-level meeting that the work on the laying of the railway track should be completed with removal of bushes along the track and to make railway stations functional on a priority basis in the first phase and no human settlement should be demolished in view of the direction of the court and the cabinet.

They said Commissioner Iftikhar Shallwani, who chaired the meeting, asked the Pakistan Railways to fully implement the decisions with regard to the KCR revival made by the Supreme Court and the Sindh cabinet in letter and spirit.

The sources said that the commissioner had called the meeting to review arrangements being made for the revival of the KCR in pursuance of the apex court’s orders in this regard.

The commissioner said that no citizen should be rendered homeless in the execution of the KCR project as per the directions of the apex court and the provincial cabinet.

Published in Dawn, February 16th, 2020