Completion of projects: Centre to help Sindh government, says PM

KARACHI: The Prime Minister, Imran Khan, in his maiden visit to Karachi said that the city is lagging behind and it’s his government’s priority to revive the city of lights.The prime minister chaired a session at the State Guest House over the law and order situation in the city on Sunday.

Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, Corps Commander Karachi Lt Gen Humayun Aziz, Sindh Governor Imran Ismael and the chief secretary attended the session. the DG Rangers Major General Muhammad Saeed and IGP Sindh Kaleem Imam and officers of the intelligence agencies were also present in the meeting.

Imran Khan took strong exception to the cases of abduction of children in the city. He sought coordinated action against abductors, the quick recovery of children and the provision of relief to parents. During the briefing by the IG Sindh and DG Rangers, it was said the percentage of serious crimes has gone down by 90 percent.

The prime minister said the law and order situation of Karachi has improved significantly, which is primarily due to the sacrifices rendered by the law enforcement agencies. The prime minister further said Karachi is the financial hub of the country and economic progress is not possible without peace and stability.

He appreciated measures being taken for cleanliness in the metropolis and directed that efforts be expedited to provide relief to the people. Imran Khan was also briefed on the Karachi's water crisis in a meeting attended by Karachi Mayor Wasim Akhtar and city commissioner Saleh Farooqi.

During the meeting, the prime minister was also briefed on the development projects including Green Line, K-IV and Karachi Package. He was told that Karachi's daily water requirements stand at 918 million gallons.

The premier ordered completion of these projects on a priority basis. Later in the day, the premier headlined a fundraiser dinner for the Diamer Bhasha Dam at the Governor House, where he delivered a speech and defended the dam-building campaign.

"In 1947, Pakistan had a per-capita water of 5,600 cubic metres but today it has reduced to only 1,000 cubic metres," he said, adding: "If we continue like this then by 2025 there will be a massive shortage of water. It will affect our food security and our agricultural production will go down.” He said those who are opposing the dams should know some statistics. “China, the country that is progressing at the fastest pace in the world, has 84,000 dams, including 5,000 big dams. India, too, has 5,000 dams and they are still building more. And we have only two major dams," the PM said. He said the country is heavily in debt, adding the new "dams cannot be financed through budget either", which is why "we have decided to carry out fundraising". He said the dams will be constructed in five years if fund-raising didn’t stop. "I am the biggest fundraiser of Pakistan's history," he said. "I have been raising funds for 30 years. The target that we have to achieve every year is Rs30 billion. God willing, we will raise more than that because I can see that Pakistanis have been mobilised, both in and out of the country."

The prime minister said in addition to the Diamer Bhasha dam, the government is also looking about to start work on Mohmand Dam which, he said, is "very feasible". "We will work on both the dams simultaneously," he said. He paid tributes to Chief Justice of Pakistan Saqib Nisar for initiating the campaign for Diamer Bhasha Dam. He promised the people present in the event to reforest Karachi. He said the city is currently a concrete jungle and called it 'a heat trap'. "We will work to formulate and incorporate Green Karachi,” he said. The premier said the Governor Houses has exorbitant costs for the people of Pakistan. "In a country where 43% of our children have stunted growth and millions remain out of schools, how can we afford this ostentatious lifestyle?" he said. The premier said the federal government will address the supply of water and transport in Karachi on an immediate basis and upgradation of Northern Bypass to address the traffic issues. He said the Centre will extend full help to the Sindh government for completing the development projects. He said the crime in the metropolis is a result of lack of justice. "We need to uplift the poor and the underprivileged. We have the Chinese model to emulate that moved 70 million people from the poverty line," he said.

Imran Khan said the waste disposal is a huge issue for the city, adding he is giving the Sindh government two more months to address the issue otherwise the federal government will take charge. He said the waste will be cleaned on a priority basis. The prime minister linked Karachi's street crime problem with the city's "rising underclass". "The illiterate do not get jobs and have no way to make a living," he said. "These people, who are originally from Bangladesh and Afghanistan, do not get passports or ID cards, " and added the federal government will give nationality to the Afghan and Bangladeshi refugees settled in the city since decades. He vowed to address the problem, and promised to make a "first-ever master plan" for the port city.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Sindh, Murad Ali Shah, discussed Sindh's problems with the prime minister and expressed his reservations against the transfer of senior officers. "Without being informed in advance, the transfer of officials out of Sindh is not the right way," the chief minister said. The chief minister also expressed concern over the deductions from Sindh's financial resources and told the PM: "Sindh is already facing financial problems. If the funds are stopped at the federal level, Sindh will face further losses." Shah claimed that "a desalination plant is the sole solution to Karachi's water crisis" and urged "the federal government to help them."

Earlier in the day, Imran Khan reached Karachi on his first ever official visit to the metropolis after assuming the office of the prime minister. Chief Minister Sindh, Murad Ali Shah and Governor Imran Ismael received the premier at Jinnah International Airport in Karachi. The Prime Minster Imran visited the Quaid's mausoleum where he laid a floral wreath and offered Fateha. He also visited the graves of Fatima Jinnah and Liaquat Ali Khan. The premier also planted a sapling at the state guest house as part of his government’s countrywide 10 Billion Trees Tsunami drive.