KARACHI: The Karachi Metropolitan Corporation has started working to create its own Transport Communication Department (TCD), its director S M Taha informed.
“We are working on a concerted plan in this regard and hopefully will complete deliberations to put the plan for debate and approval in next council meeting of KMC before entity’s annual budget 2017-18 announcement”.
On the direction of Waseem Akhtar Mayor Karachi, Hanif Muhammad Mirchawala, Municipal Commissioner KMC vide KMC/PS/MC/814/2017 May 4, 2017 has issued orders for creation TCD of the civic entity.
It is also be noted that in compliance of various clauses of Sindh Local Government Ordinance 2017, earlier issued and with the approval of Mayor Karachi, a TCD creation under senior director, Municipal Services, KMC would function on various levels.
The functions of TCD include matter of parking plazas, intercity bus depot and terminals, oil tankers parking terminals, traffic signals besides KMC owned compressed natural gas-CNG buses operation and management system for pedestrian bridges etc.
This step will revive the transport department KMC that has remained inactive because of the intervention of Karachi Development Authority. Government of Sindh has control over department’s transport.
“However we at present have no technical manpower to handle the system as all experts are detailed in KDA, but there is a plan on cards to hire and appoint experts on transport”, he asserted.
According to Act 2013, KMC is responsible to carry out related transport matters.
Qamar Qureshi, President Economic Forum Pakistan was of the view that it be better that before creating TCD, KMC should consult with existing bodies in the business like Karachi Public Transport Society, Karachi Mass Transit Cell, Traffic Engineering Bureau KDA, Regional Transport Authority, Vehicle Department (police) and private driving training schools for a better outcome in this respect.
Anyhow, in case of functional TCD, the public transport users would be greatly benefited, he hoped.
Qamar said there should be strong will to carry out these activities aiming for the convenience of public transport commuters. The past should not be repeated when Karachi Transport Corporation was created in 1960’s under Sindh government and it failed to deliver good on bad governance in 1997. Later World Bank had to release funds for golden handshake scheme of the employees of the entity.