Sindh to ask Centre to lift ban on giving new industrial gas connections

CM says he will also seek a cut in gas holidays 

Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has said he will ask the federal government to lift a ban on giving new industrial gas connections in Sindh and to reduce the number of gas holidays.

This he said while holding the second meeting with all the seven associations of industrialists within 20 days at the CM House on Friday to resolve their issues. 

The industrialists raised their issues, including water, power and gas shortages, dilapidated infrastructure and encroachments.

The meeting was told that Sui Southern Gas Company had stopped giving new industrial gas connections; therefore, industrial growth had slowed. It was observed that on the one hand, the provincial and federal governments were striving to bring in new investment, but on the other, the “unrealistic” decisions of increasing gas holidays and stopping gas connections would discourage new investment.

The chief minister assured the industrialists that he would take up the issue with the federal government to lift the ban on new gas connections and cut the number of gas holidays, one observed every Sunday.

The meeting was further told that in the industrial areas of North Karachi and Korangi, there were a lot of encroachments, and some industrial units had started parking trucks and other vehicles on the main roads, causing serious problems for other industrialists. 

On this, Chief Minister Shah ordered the removal of all encroachments from the industrial areas and urged the industrialists to utilise their own parking spaces instead of blocking the main roads and open areas. He ordered the additional inspector general of Karachi to take action and submit a report to him.

Minister Local Governments Jam Khan Shoro again urged the industrialists not to support water mafias, which had created parallel water boards. He offered them to get connections from the water board. “Don’t encourage water thieves,” he said. 

The minister said that he had closed all the hydrants and now only eight hydrants were working in the city.

He said the upgradation of pumping stations at Dhabeji and Pipri was in progress, and Karachi would get another 65MGD after the upgradation of the pumping stations.

The chief minister said that he was working to install a power station at Dhabeji so that power failures could not affect the supply.

He also mentioned that he had released funds to purchase fire tenders and two snorkels to cater to the needs of the city. He added that the road from the airport to Quaidabad and from Quaidabad to Ghaggar would be constructed very soon. 

The Frontier Works Organisation had already been given a contract for constructing the road from Ghaggar to Thatta and “we are extending their contract upto the airport and Inshallah this documentation would be completed shortly”, he said.

Those who attended the meeting included Korangi Association President Masood Naqi, Landhi President Zia Bashir, Bin Qasim President Rasheed jan Mohammad, FB Area President Javed Suleman, North Karachi President Akhtar Ismail, SITE President Asad Nisar, SITE Super Highway President Jamshed Ahmed, Minister for Industries Manzoor Wassan, Adviser to CM Murtaza Wahab, Additional Chief Secretary (Dev) Mohammad Waseem and Additional IG Karachi Mushtaq Maher.