KARACHI: At a talk organised by the English Speaking Union Pakistan (ESUP) at a local hotel here on Friday, Commissioner Syed Hassan Naqvi discussed a number of challenges in governing Karachi.

The commissioner touched upon and explained the issues faced by the city such as uncontrolled population growth, jurisdictional quagmire, the ever changing local government system, inadequate master planning, poor water supply and sanitation, inefficient transport system, dilapidated heritage, degrading environment and cumbersome price and quality control.

In the last 70 years, the population of Karachi increased from 1,1 million to 20m, he said, adding that the biggest growth rate was in district Central and district East, which also saw the influx of people from upcountry. Therefore, the growth was rapid, which impacted livability.

“The acute challenges facing Karachi, compounded by rapid population growth and complex governance structures have over the past few decades resulted in the degradation of its dense urban and social environment, making it one of the least livable cities globally,” he said.

The fragmented governance also came in the way of urban planning and service delivery in Karachi and there had been seven master plans proposed for the city in the past, including two before independence in 1947, but despite efforts, the implementation of those plans had proven challenging, he said.

“The first plan, proposed by A.E. Miran in 1922 was the only one fully approved and implemented. The second plan, proposed by Colonel Swain Thomas in 1946, and the subsequent five plans faced issues such as delayed publication, mismatched proposals with the current reality, legal and technical shortcomings and limited implementation,” the commissioner pointed out.

He said another big issue faced by the city was its water supply as water was being supplied to Karachi from considerably distant locations through a bulk conveyance system consisting of a complex network of canals, conduits, siphons, multi-stage pumping and filtration.

The present supply to Karachi from Indus and Hub was approximately 650MGD. The gallons per capita water demand for a population of 20 million was 1,080MGD, bringing the current shortfall to 430MGD.

“By 2025, the projected population of Karachi will be 23 million, bringing up the demand to 1,242MGD and a shortfall of 600MGD,” he said and added that the city also suffered from a poor drainage

system along with the issue of solid waste management.

According to him, the main issues of the transport sector in Karachi include inadequate road network, overcrowding and congestion, a predominantly radial road network with limited circumferential connectivity and an absence of mass transit and adequate public transport.

He said Karachi was also one of the most vulnerable cities of Pakistan, prone to different kinds of threats and hazards due to its unique geo-climatic conditions. It was at a high risk of disasters such as floods, earthquakes, tsunamis, cyclones, water scarcity, heat waves and fire, he added.

“Due to a high incidence of air, land and water pollution that results from inadequate management of solid and hazardous waste including municipal waste, medical waste, raw sewerage, industrial affluent and vehicular pollution, a large population of Karachi is prone to diseases linked to environmental pollution,” he pointed out.

As for the price and quality control challenges, he said that the precarious economic situation led to continuous price fluctuations. “Additionally, groceries, milk and meat prices are subject to frequent fluctuations due to factors such as seasonal variations. Hence, formulating effective policies may become challenging,” he said.

He added that the supply chain for essential commodities in Karachi was also complex and fragmented, involving numerous intermediaries, wholesalers and retailers. “This complexity makes it difficult to track price fluctuations and identify instances of price gouging or hoarding,” he said.

President International Council of ESU and Patron-in-Chief ESUP Aziz Memon, its President Pervez H. Madraswala and Secretary General Majyd Aziz also spoke.

Published in Dawn, April 27th, 2024