CM Sindh okays procurement of 100 buses for Karachi, another 100 for other districts

Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has approved a proposal of the provincial transport department to procure 200 buses, half of them for Karachi and the other half for five other districts of Sindh, to ply them through the private sector on dedicated routes.

The CM took this decision on Tuesday while presiding over a meeting of the transport department at the seventh floor of the New Sindh Secretariat. The meeting was attended by Transport Minister Awais Qadir Shah, Planning and Development Board Chairman Mohammad Waseem, Principal Secretary to Chief Minister Sajid Jamal Abro, Finance Secretary Hassan Naqvi, Karachi Commissioner Iftikhar Shallwani, Transport Secretary Abbas Detho and others.

The transport minister told the CM that he had submitted a plan to him for his approval. Under the proposed plan, an international tender would be floated to purchase 200 city buses of low height to ply them in Karachi and in other five districts of Sindh.

The operation of the buses would be handed over to private parties that would be selected through a transparent manner, Awais said. The provincial government would select important routes of the city and fix their fares and the private management would have to implement the government plan and carry out the operations.

The CM directed the transport minister to submit a detailed plan for the procurement of buses and their specifications, qualification of private operators and details of the routes. He also directed the transport department to expedite the process and complete it within seven months.

Truck stand

The meeting also discussed the shifting of the truck stand in Mauripur to the Norther Bypass. Board of Revenue senior member Qazi Shahid Parvez told the CM that the land had been allocated but its entry in the revenue record had yet to be made. To this, the CM directed him to finalise all the legal requirements within the next 15 days and report to him.

The CM said this was an important matter and he wanted to ensure that the truck stand was shifted to the Northern Bypass.

Bus terminal, biogas plant

The CM also decided to establish the Inter-City Bus Terminal on the Super Highway over an area of 100 acres. He said he had already approved the summary but still the transfer of land had been completed. He directed Parvez to transfer the title of the land and report him within 15 days.

The CM said the decision had already been taken to establish a biogas plant in Bhains Colony under the Karachi Bus Service Project. He directed the transport minister to hold a meeting with the local government minister and the Karachi mayor to transfer land for the biogas plant. It must be decided within the next 15 days, the CM said.

The transport minister informed the meeting that a summary for the transfer of driving licence branch from the police to the transport department had been sent to the CM.

Murad said he would approve the summary and he wanted the driving licence branch to be operated on a professional basis. He also directed the transport department to make the driving school functional. The CM said he was keen on providing the best transport facilities to Karachi and others districts of the province as soon as possible.