Deputy mayor says toll tax on Karachi roads to enhance KMC’s revenue

KARACHI: In his remarks on the imposition of toll tax by City Council on vehicles plying Karachi arteries, Karachi Deputy Mayor Salman Abdullah said the purpose behind the tax was to make the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) "stand on its own feet to serve the megalopolis".

Talking on Geo News' programme "Geo Pakistan", Abdullah said the toll tax on the roads under the KMC limits would be charged through the Excise Department.

To a query, he said work on thoroughfares within the KMC’s jurisdiction was underway for commuters’ convenience.

In a meeting on Tuesday, the City Council approved the toll tax collection in collaboration with the Sindh Excise and Taxation Department from vehicles using the roads and bridges of Karachi.

The forum approved the new tax on a demand made through a resolution presented by Irshad Ali Advocate and Dil Muhammad.

Addressing a press conference after the session, Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab had said many institutions, including the National Highway, collected the toll tax, but no one gave tax in Karachi.

Meanwhile, Abdullah said the local government had taken all the towns on board for lifting of offal on Eid ul Adha. He urged the citizens not to throw offal on roads.

“We will try that all of us collectively work for the city’s cleanliness,” he said.