CM resolves KMC- KDA disputes over parking lots

Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali chaired a meeting to resolve disputes between the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) and the Karachi Development Authority (KDA) over parking areas in Karachi and directed them to withdraw their cases from courts.

The meeting was attended by Local Government Minister Nasir Hussain Shah, Administrator KMC Murtaza Wahab, Principal Secretary to CM Sajid Jamal Abro, Special Secretary Local Government Khalid Chachar, DG KDA Asif Memon and Director KDA Khalid Masroor.

KMC Administrator Murtaza Wahab told the meeting that a dispute between the KMC and the KDA was going on in a court over the ownership of a parking lot at Bara-Dari, which has been rented out to a local hotel for a Rs3.5 million annual rent.

Local Government Minister Nasir Shah said the plot belonged to the KMC and the defunct city-district government had constructed the underground parking lot. He added that in those days the KDA was a part of the city government, and that the matter had in the court for many years and the rent was being deposited in the court.

At this, the CM decided that the land on which the underground parking had been developed belonged to the KMC; therefore, the area should be taken over by it. Wahab said another dispute between the KMC and the KDA was over the ownership of the Parking Plaza in the Saddar area.

The local government minister said the land on which the Parking Plaza had been constructed belonged to KDA and the expenditures incurred on its construction had been met with the city government’s funds. At this, the CM decided that the owner of the land was the KDA; therefore, the Parking Plaza should be given to it. The CM said both the KMC and the KDA belonged to the people of Karachi; therefore, they should work for the betterment of the people instead of indulging in legal battles.

Another matter which came under discussion was the allotment of advertisement spots and their revenue collection. The KMC and the DMCs (district municipal corporations) have disputes over such issues.

At this, the chief minister said there was massive pilferage in the advertisement revenues. He suggested the local government department should constitute a central organisation to deal with advertisements and then share the revenue collections as per the share of the DMCs.

It was pointed out that the Urban Design Department of the KDA had been working in the Sindh Building Control Authority. The CM directed the KDA to de-notify them and ask them to report back to the KDA.

The local government minister pointed out that the parks of the KMC and the DMCs were in a dilapidated condition, and those which had been restored were facing ownership issues. The CM decided that the parks of the local bodies should be outsourced for their maintenance and ownership.

At a request from the local government minister, he vowed to give a grant to the KDA to bail it out of its financial crisis. He added that he had given a Rs500 million grant to the KDA last year. Shah directed the KDA to remove encroachments from its land and develop its projects in the public interest and in its own financial interest.