Sindh govt, KMC prepare to ‘steal’ Malir River bed

By Hafeez Tunio Published: November 6, 2012 A project to reclaim land along the river for housing is under consideration. PHOTO: FILE KARACHI: If the land mafia wasn’t enough of a scourge in Karachi, the Sindh government has also decided to encroach lands. Around 350 acres of the Malir River bed will be reclaimed to be later sold off to builders to initiate residential housing schemes, it has been decided. Initially, embankments will be built inside the river bed adjacent to the Defence Housing Authority (DHA) for the land which has an estimated value of between Rs20 billion and Rs30 billion. The Malir River passes through the north-eastern areas of Karachi before draining into the Arabian Sea. In the rainy season, the river experiences large water flow, but during high tide, gushing seawater enters the river upstream. The land reclamation will be carried out jointly by the Sindh government and the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation. The Karachi commissioner, Hashim Raza Zaidi, has been appointed as the project director. Initial estimates suggest reclamation will cost around Rs1.89 billion to the Sindh government. A meeting has been called on Wednesday (tomorrow) to speed up the pace of work on land reclamation on the right side of Malir River starting from Korangi Bridge on its way to the Arabian Sea, a planning and development officer privy to the development told The Express Tribune. “The government is initiating the project by reclaiming land along the Malir River and appointed me the project director a couple of days ago,” Zaidi told The Express Tribune. “I have no further idea about the project and will let you know after a meeting on the project which will be held soon.” A few days ago, the Sindh land utilisation department sent a proposal of the prospective project to the Sindh chief minister, who in turn directed the officials concerned to immediately prepare the feasibility of the scheme in consultation with the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation. Soon after, a meeting was held at the office of planning and development additional chief secretary where officials of Sindh Building Control Authority, Karachi Metropolitan Corporation, Malir Expressway, National Institute of Oceanography and irrigation, land utilisation and finance departments were also summoned. “The Sindh government can earn hefty amounts from this project. If we do not initiate it, the land grabbers will eventually occupy the river bed nevertheless,” one of the land utilisation officials is reported to have said that at the meeting. Given the intrusion of sea toward the project site, the acting director general of the National Institute of Oceanography, Dr Ali Rashid Tabrez, suggested conducting a comprehensive survey along with a technical feasibility. “We should be careful about it because seawater remains stagnant at the site for a while,” he said according to the meeting minutes. The government would soon hire consultants for a technical study at the project site after which the initial financial plan will be prepared by the works and services department. The summary will be sent to the Sindh chief minister for his consent before being approved from the provincial cabinet. Renowned architect and town planner, Arif Hassan, was surprised to hear about the government’s proposal to reclaim land in the Malir River bed. The reclamation will reduce the width of the river, thereby resulting in flooding during the rainy season, he said. “The river is not for building houses but drainage of water,” he added. Published in The Express Tribune, November 6th, 2012

Groundbreaking ceremony of DHA City Karachi next month

Posted 6 mins ago by admin in Blog, Pakistan Property News | No comments yet Groundbreaking ceremony of DHA City Karachi next month KARACHI – The groundbreaking ceremony of the multi-billion rupees mega project, the DHA City Karachi (DCK), would be held next month. The DHA City Karachi would be a modern, well-planned and a complete city that would offer all basic facilities to its inhabitants. It is located along the Karachi-Hyderabad Super Highway, at a distance of 56 kilometres from the core area of Karachi and 35 kilometres from the airport, and it comprises 11,640 acres. “We are organising the groundbreaking ceremony to kick-start development work on the project from February 2012,” said Lt-Col (retd) Rafat Hussain Naqvi, DHA Karachi’s additional director of public relations. The groundbreaking ceremony would not only enhance the value of plots in the scheme, but also generate employment and economic activity in the area. The DHA recently unveiled the master plan of the scheme that envisaged $3 billion worth investment/expenditures in the DHA City Karachi till its completion by 2030. The development of infrastructure would alone cost $1.1 billion (Rs 100 billion). By the year 2015, the DHA City Karachi will be made livable and plot holders could build their homes and stay there with important amenities. According to the master plan of the scheme, a modern international university, a 1,000-bed hospital and two lakes would be developed at the residential-cum-commercial project. The DHA City Karachi will have its own 500MW power plant, solar, wind energy projects and drinking water facility. DHA Karachi Administrator Brig Aamer Raza Qureshi, DCK Project Director Brig (retd) Muhammad Rafique, Osmani & Co Chairman Inam Ahmed Osmani and Prof EC Kondylis participated in the unveiling ceremony of master plan. In the coming years, the DCK could emerge as an organised and secure modern city, having all basic amenities and recreational facilities. The DHA is in the process of acquiring more land adjacent to the project with the aim to expand the project by 2.5 times than its existing size. Out of a total of 48,521 plots, about 25,143 have been sold and the remaining 23,378 would be offered for sale in the next phase. From the year 2012-15, a short-term plan and from 2015-2020 a medium-term plan would be implemented to continue the development programme. From the year 2020-30 a long-term plan would be put in place to accomplish the task of development of the city Note: For those who want to invest in Canadian Commercial/ Residential Real Estate can contact blogger any time.