Daily Times

KARACHI: The Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) has handed over 22 car parking areas to the east, south and central district municipal corporations.

Mukhtar Hussain, the KMC Charged Parking senior director, said that a meeting had been held among the Karachi mayor and the DMC heads on October 10. “It was decided in the meeting that around 22 out of 35 parking sites in their respective administrative limits will be handed over to them,” he said.

The central district got back seven sites, the DMC east was handed over nine sites and the south district was given five car parking sites. Another five parking sites remain tied in litigation.

Mukhtar said that following the decision, the DMCs would earn additional revenue of Rs 40 million.

In a written letter, Mayor Waseem Akhtar urged Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah to handover the Saddar Parking Plaza back to the KMC, which had built it in 2010.

In his letter, Waseem Akhtar said that after giving back 22 parking sites to three districts in the city, the KMC would face a revenue deficit of Rs 40 million.

“The KMC built this site at a cost of Rs 420 million. Instead of handing over the plaza to the Karachi Development Authority from the Lines Area Resettlement Project, the Sindh CM should handover the site to the KMC. In this way, the civic entity will be able to generate revenue as it has already been deprived of revenue earning of Rs 40 million,” he said.

“After taking the parking plaza’s possession, the KMC would be in a better position to administer the charged parkings on KMC roads without obstruction from the KDA and DMC south,” he said.

Irfan Zai, the Lines Area additional director, said that plaza was currently being managed under the Lines Area Resettlement Project. “It is earning around Rs 800,000 a month on average. This revenue can be increased to Rs 10 million if we are allowed to rent out shops and offices in the plaza,” he said.

KMC is currently charging Rs 5 parking fee for a motorbike, Rs 20 for a car, Rs 30 to Rs 50 for a mini-truck and Rs 100 for a bus in the 13 parking sites in city.

Around 21 government bodies, including one private firm in Karachi, also receive additional parking fees. However, according to the Sindh Local Government Act 2013, only the KMC is authorised to collect parking fees.

Moreover, six cantonment boards, the Pakistan Railway, the Civil Aviation Authority, the Karachi Port Trust, the Citizens Police Liaison Committee, the District Council, the Gabo Pat Union Council and a private firm is collecting parking fee on 35 roads and streets in the old city area.

After this deal between KMC and three districts, DMC Central will get parking rights of internal and external streets of Hydri Market, Dolmen Mall North Nazimabad, Saifee Hospital and Chase-up North Nazimabad, Anarkali Water Pump, Fateh Bagh North Nazimabad, Geo-up Mobile Market and Meena Bazaar Karimabad.

The DMC south will manage Boat Basin Clifton, Chase Store Clifton, Department Store Ocean Chapel Apartment, Empress Market Saddar, Rainbow Centre Saddar, Bagh Ibne-Qasim, Pak Towers Clifton and Gul Plaza Charged Parking.

The DMC East will get Bahadurabad, Sindhi Muslim Round About, Imtiaz Store Bahadurabad, Sirajud Dula Road, Kababish Muhammad Ali Society, Shazz Store Gulshan, Patel Hospital Gulshan, internal streets of KDA Market and the streets located behind the Civic Centre.

Published in Daily Times, October 13^th 2017.