Utilities connections of Nasla Tower disconnected

KARACHI: Following the orders of the Supreme Court , the commissioner Karachi has decided to seek tenders from demolition companies to raze the Nasla Tower in a week, whereas the utility connections of the residential building were disconnected Tuesday.

Earlier, the Supreme Court had ordered the commissioner Karachi to demolish the Nasla Tower in the Sindhi Muslim Cooperative Housing Society (SMCHS) through a controlled detonation device, ensuring no loss of life and damage to any other property during the process, in a week's time.

The court also observed that armed forces’ assistance could be sought for execution of the job if the civic agency lacks required expertise, adding that influential persons, taking advantage of the weak administrative system in the city, minted money and settled in foreign countries without any accountability.

On Monday night, the assistant commissioner, Ferozabad, issued directives to Karachi Water and Sewerage Board (KWSB), K-Electric (KE) and Sui Southern Gas Company Limited to disconnect utility connections to the tower. The following morning, all the connections were disconnected.

The commissioner Karachi held a meeting on Tuesday in his office about the demolition. The meeting was attended by director general SBCA, officials of Frontier Works Organization (FWO), officials of the 5-Corps Karachi, NED University’s Professor Dr Abdul Jabbar Sangi, officials of KMC, SSWMB, deputy commissioner East and assistant commissioner Ferozabad. The commissioner asked the director general SBCA to furnish the technical/seismic feasibility of the Nasla Tower in two days for further action. The meeting discussed technical aspects for the demolition of the building. Besides, they also decided to seek applications from demolition companies through advertisements in newspapers, stated in the press-release issued by commissioner office, Karachi.

In a related development, those living in rented flats have started vacating the building, the residents cum owners of the flats are not budging unless their payments are refunded by the builder. They claimed that authorities could bomb the building with them inside it. Talking to The News, a desperate resident Shaheen said, “If the builder pays money to the owners, we’ll leave the building the next day,” adding, but “Once we leave the building without payment, no one will help us in returning our money.”