First arrest made for littering in city after Section 144 imposed

A day after the Sindh government banned open littering for 90 days in Karachi, the police on Thursday arrested a man for throwing garbage on a street in District Malir.

The man, identified as Abdul Jabbar, was arrested by the Sukkan police, after which a case was registered against him under the Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC). The police said they made the arrest after they received a complaint about a citizen dumping garbage on a street.

It is pertinent to mention here that the Sindh government on Wednesday declared the imposition of Section 144 in Karachi for a period of 90 days to stop littering, after which the police have been empowered to arrest people littering on the streets and beaches, throwing garbage outside their houses, littering through windows of vehicles on the roads, dumping debris of damaged structures or under-construction buildings on the roads and spitting paan in the open.

According to a notification issued in this regard late on Wednesday night, anyone found violating the Section 144 would be prosecuted under the Section 188 of the Pakistan Penal Code, which pertains to disobeying orders of a public servant. The penalties range from the one-month imprisonment and a fine of Rs200 to the six-month imprisonment and a fine of Rs1,000, depending on the degree of violation.

CM’s media talk

Commenting on the provincial government’s cleanliness drive on Thursday, Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah said the results of the drive were improving every day.

He was talking to media persons at the Centre for Autism Rehabilitation and Training in Gulistan-e-Jauhar, which is being run by the provincial department for the empowerment of persons with disabilities.

“The cleaning work to beautify this city is not only improving day by day but it has going on in full swing,” the CM remarked. He said that between Saturday and Wednesday, over 138,000 tons of garbage was lifted by the Sindh Solid Waste Management Board (SSWMB).

The CM urged the people to cooperate with the government by throwing trash in dustbins. He also requested the builders to lift debris or construction material at the under-construction buildings themselves.

Shah asked the media persons not to show the cleanliness drive in negative light. “We are working for the betterment of this city which also belongs to each and every one of you, therefore you must report positive,” he said.

On Wednesday night, the CM visited Gulshan-e-Iqbal Block 6 to monitor the lifting of garbage from a playground. “When I left, the media reported that garbage was dumped there again just after the chief minister left. This was not the true picture,” he claimed.

He explained that the new cleanliness drive was initiated to catch up on the backlog of garbage lying in the streets and open grounds so that it could be dumped at temporary garbage transfer stations (GTS) set up at various locations in the city.

The SSWMB has been authorised to lift garbage from the temporary GTSs and transport it to the landfill sites and this will be done during the ongoing 30-day drive, the CM said.

NAB questions

The CM also informed the media that the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) through a questionnaire had asked him about the tariff subsidy given to the Captive Power Plants and he told the bureau that he would take some time to submit his answers on account of legal and constitutional issues.

He also complained that some media persons were carrying out his character assassination in their talk shows. “This is quite deplorable. They consider themselves well aware and keep misguiding their viewers that I have been summoned in Thatta sugar mill case,” he said, adding that as a matter of fact, the NAB authorities had sent him a questionnaire and summoned him in connection with the tariff subsidy given to the Captive Power Plants. He said the questionnaire was issued on September 17 and he was summoned on September 24.

Autism centre

The CM inaugurated the third floor of the Centre for Autism Rehabilitation and Training Sindh and also opened the exercise room and consultant clinics. He observed children with disabilities working out at the gym. He also inaugurated a bus he provided to the centre as the transport facility for the differently-abled children.

The children with disabilities presented tableaus and performed songs for the CM. Addressing the event, the CM resolved his commitment to make differently-abled children as useful members of society. “I feel quite happy, satisfied and content just after meeting you [differently-abled children],” he said.

Special Assistant to the CM Syed Qasim Naveed and Secretary Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities Khalid Chachar received the CM when he arrived at the centre.

Follow-up meeting

Presiding over a follow-up meeting on the cleanliness drive at the CM House, Shah directed all the SSPs to work with the deputy commissioners and arrest the unscrupulous people stuffing the manholes with stones and boulders.

He also directed the police to deal with those who stole dustbins placed on the roads, forcing the people to throw their trash in the open. “I am very clear and determined to keep this city clean once for all and would not allow anybody to create problems,” he warned. The CM appreciated the district administration, DMCs and civic agencies for working together to clean the city.