MORE than 40 years ago, plots of land in Hawkesbay Scheme 42 were allotted to people by the Karachi Development Authority (KDA) and the Sindh govern-ment through a formal balloting process. The applicants paid the full amount in good faith, hoping to build homes in a properly developed and leased area.

However, despite the passage of decades, there has been no progress in development work. The basic infrastructure is not there, and no progress has been made in terms of land lease. In 1996, the scheme was transferred to the Lyari Development Authority (LDA), but that did not help the applicants in any substantial way.

What was promised as a planned re-sidential area remains a barren, neglected piece of land even today. This delay is not just an administrative failure; it is a form of betrayal. Generations have waited, only to find their investment insecure and their trust eroded. The authorities’ silence and inaction amount to deception.

Many allottees have passed away without ever seeing the land they had paid for. The LDA, the Sindh government, and other planning bodies should honour their commitments. Development and lease issuance should begin without delay. The victims of this negligence deserve justice, or else public confidence in government housing schemes will continue to decline.

Muhammad Anwar ul Haque
Karachi

Published in Dawn, June 4th, 2025