KARACHI: Karachi Mayor Barrister Murtaza Wahab announced Saturday that a notification would be issued to abolish parking fees at 46 sites under the administrative control of the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC).
"This decision has been taken in the public interest," said Wahab in a statement today, "[…] as the KMC is now standing on its own feet." He was referring to improvement in the financial situation of the metropolitan corporation.
He added that after achieving financial stability, the corporation does not need to collect Rs40-50 million via parking fees as it has more than Rs2 billion in its bank account.
A day ago, Wahab claimed that the KMC had earned a "record-breaking Rs2.3 billion revenue" in just seven months, witnessing a 300% increase in earnings while 751 development projects were in progress.
In today's announcement, the mayor said that a notification would be issued to end parking fees and vowed people who are "illegally" charging fees using the name of KMC would be arrested.
"Fees will not be charged at 46 parking sites on 106 main roads of Karachi. However, parking fees would be charged in 6 cantonment boards and 25 towns of the metropolis."
He said that it was his administration's top priority to facilitate the citizens as the financial situation of the KMC has stabilised.
Prior to this development, the Sindh government imposed a ban on the entry of dumpers across the metropolis following a rise in fatal accidents involving heavy vehicles.
As per the new directives, dumpers will only be allowed to enter Karachi from 11pm to 6am, meaning there will be an essential daytime ban on them in the country's financial hub.
The new restrictions came against the backdrop of an alarming increase in fatalities caused by accidents involving heavy vehicles, including dumpers, in Karachi in recent weeks.