KARACHI, Dec 22: City Nazim Mustafa Kamal has said that the city government has started execution of uplift projects worth Rs9 billion within a short span of time for infrastructure uplift and overall development of the city.

Speaking at a reception hosted in his honour by the American Business Council Pakistan at a local hotel on Thursday, Mr Kamal said these projects would be completed in two years and Karachiites would notice positive changes within a year.

Giving details of the projects initiated in various sectors, he said that Rs4 billion had been provided for sewerage and water supply lines’ repair and replacement, Rs2.5 billion for infrastructure development of all the city’s industrial zones, Rs2.5 billion for underpasses and bridges’ construction and Rs250 million for carpeting of roads. He mentioned that all these projects had been initiated by the new leadership of city government.

The nazim disclosed that construction work on 22 roads was delayed due to underground utility connections, as Karachi had no master plan despite being the seventh largest city of the world in terms of population.

“No planning for utility services was made in the past. Now the city government has taken two revolutionary decisions — firstly no road would be constructed without rain drains, and secondly underground utility connections would be put on sides of all roads to be constructed,” he said, adding billions of rupees would be spent on it but it would solve the problem forever.

Mustafa Kamal said that private sector would take over task of garbage lifting in the city by Feb 15, 2006. He also called upon private sector to invest in building of proposed Parking Plaza. He maintained that he was trying his best to reorganize city government’s revenue department, as its performance was very poor.

Meanwhile, Mustafa Kamal said that work on the first phase of Karachi Mass Transit Project would start from June 2006.

Talking to the Japanese Consul-General in Karachi, Shoichi Nakano, who called on him at his office, the nazim sought Japanese cooperation for installation of desalination plant to cater water needs of the city.

He told the diplomat that only three per cent of water was distributed through tankers and it would be reduced to one per cent after 100MGD extra water supply to the metropolis.

He further said that law and order of the city had improved and negative perception about Karachi had proved wrong after peaceful holding of international cricket and football matches in Karachi. However, he said occurrence of a few minor incidents could not be made precedence to substantiate deteriorating law and order situation.

—PPI