The Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) named a bridge each after the Jaamat-e-Islami’s former Karachi Nazim Advocate Naimatullah Khan and world-renowned Qawwal Amjad Farid Sabri, and an urban forest after educator Deena Mistri in recognition of their outstanding services in their respective fields.
According to a press statement issued by the KMC, on the directives of Karachi Administrator Barrister Murtaza Wahab, the city council had passed three resolutions to honour the personalities who had served the metropolis. Under sections 85 and 86 of the Sindh Local Government Act 2013, it is permissible to name public places and routes within the limits of the KMC after persons who have rendered valuable services to the country.
The bridge at Sakhi Hassan Chowrangi has been named after Khan, who had become an elected member of the Provincial Assembly of Sindh in the 1985 elections. In 2001 he had been elected as the Karachi Nazim and had rendered significant services to the metropolis. He passed away at the age of 90 on February 25, 2020, in the city.
Amjad Sabri underpass
The underpass in Gharibabad has been named after Sabri, who had started learning the art of Qawwali at the age of nine, and at the age of 12 he performed his first Qawwali.
After the death of his father Ghulam Farid Sabri in 1994, he had adopted his father’s art and reached the heights of fame. He had presented his father’s Qawwalis in a new style, and his innovations were lauded all over the world. He soon gained worldwide recognition for his distinctive style of Naat recitation. He was shot dead by gunmen on June 22, 2016.
Deena Mistri forest
The Urban Forest in Clifton has been named after Deena, who had been the principal of the BVS Parsi High School. She had spent 60 years of her life educating the children of Karachi.
A presidential medal for excellence had been awarded to her by the Government of Pakistan in recognition of her valuable services in the field of education. She had been associated with the education sector all her life, and had played her role in the education and training of many generations.
‘Remember our heroes’
Wahab said we should remember our heroes, and pass on the deeds of those who have served this city to the next generation so that the future generations can be introduced to them through their services. He said Karachi is a very important city in terms of civilisation and culture, and its history spans centuries. He added that Karachi had been known internationally even before Pakistan had been formed, and that even today this city is the identity of the country.
