KARACHI: The Sindh High Court on Friday summoned officials of the Lyari Development Authority (LDA), Karachi Development Authority (KDA) and District Municipal Corporation-West for not filing comments in a petition filed around two years ago for construction and repairing of Gulbai-Hawkesbay Road and removal of encroachments along the roadside.

A division bench headed by Justice Zafar Ahmed Rajput expressed annoyance over the director general of the LDA, director policy, planning & design section, KDA and administrator of the DMC-West as they did not submit replies.

The bench directed them to appear in person on Dec 16 along with progress reports regarding the status of the road and elimination of encroachments.

A woman lawyer had moved the SHC and sought directives for the respondents to repair and build the road forthwith to avoid deadly accidents.

The petitioner argued that the people could not take patients and victims of accidents to hospitals due to damaged and miserable condition of the road in question.

She further submitted that the broken road and its footpaths had also been encroached upon and sought directives for the respondents to clear such encroachments in order to restore the flow of the traffic.

The petitioner also pleaded for removal of the truck stand as she submitted that the Supreme Court had passed an order in this regard. She argued that this was the only thoroughfare running from Gulbai to Hawkesbay through the truck stand and it had become in worst condition.

Meanwhile, the same bench has directed the builder of a four-storey building in Saddar, known as Makkah Tower, to hand it over to the Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA) within two weeks for removal of a portion constructed in violation of rules encroaching the compulsory open space (COS).

The court also asked the builder to provide suitable accommodations to the occupants of the building and if he failed to comply with the order, the occupants must vacate the premises within a week and shift to other places and their expanses would be borne by the builder.

The bench directed the SBCA to carry out requisite work after getting the possession of the building and complete the task within a period of one month and restore the building in good habitable condition for the occupants.

Published in Dawn, November 13th, 2021