KARACHI: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Saturday announced a “historic” financial package of Rs1.1 trillion to fix the infrastructure issues in the southern port city of Karachi.
Khan visited the mega city a week after torrential rains that resulted in massive urban flooding and devastated the infrastructure of the country’s commercial capital, exposing major weaknesses of governance and civic services.
Addressing a news conference at Sindh’s Governor House, he said: “This Rs1.1 trillion development package will be used to address the city’s major issues, including water, transport and solid waste management.”
Ranging from short- to long-term projects, the prime minister’s transformation plan would be implemented through the Provincial Implementation Coordination Committee (PCIC).
All issues of the mega city would be solved within three years, he announced.
“I should have come earlier,” he continued, “but we had to prepare a structure, something similar to what we made while dealing with the coronavirus, under the chief minister in which all stakeholders, including the army, were going to be on board.”
Khan said that the plan would help solve chronic water issues of the city within three years.
“We have decided that that this issue will be permanently resolved within three years through equal participation of the provincial and federal governments,” he added.
He noted that the second major issue related to drainage systems since people had built houses over drainage channels.
“We have decided that the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) will clear the drainage system. This will also uproot some poor people, but the provincial administration of Sindh has taken their responsibility. This is how we, the federal and provincial authorities, plan to solve this issue,” he said.
The prime minister also highlighted other problems of the city, including clogged sewerage systems, transportation and solid waste management, saying they would be resolved “once and for all” under this plan.
Khan acknowledged the implementation issue in Karachi due to overlapping jurisdictions of various authorities.
“Now that the PCIC has been formed, all stakeholders have been brought together at one place, making the decision-making processes much easier. The main thing is implementation,” he said.
The prime minister also announced that the Karachi Circular Railway project would also be revived under the city’s development plan.