THE visit of Prime Minister Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif to Karachi was necessarily in connection with paying respects at the Quaid-i-Azam mausoleum, which is a tradition for new head of the state and the government but assumed special significance as Shehbaz heads a party that laid foundations of a separate homeland for Muslims of South Asia, but he used the opportunity to have meaningful discussions with Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah and leadership of MQM(P) on issues and problems facing Sindh in general and people of Karachi in particular.
As no one knows for sure how much time is available to the new PM to implement his agenda, he is wasting not a single moment and this became evident when he had in-flight consultations with one of the key members of his economic team — Miftah Ismail — on economic issues as well as problems confronting citizens of Karachi.
The announcements and commitments that the Prime Minister made during his visit to Karachi must be reassuring for Karachiites as these indicated the chief executive was fully alive to their plight and is determined to resolve their problems with the support and cooperation of the provincial government, which would, understandably be forthcoming because of the nature of the new set-up after ouster of PTI government at the centre.
Traffic congestions and shortage of water are the major concerns of people of Karachi and with this in view, Shehbaz announced to include Karachi Circular Railway (KCR) in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects and issued directives for early completion of K-IV bulk water scheme, construction of all roads of industrial areas of the mega city and financially supporting the provincial government in the procurement of buses for the BRT project.
Revival of KCR remains a pipe dream mainly because of lack of commitment on the part of those at the helm of affairs in the past despite consistent focus of the Supreme Court on the project.
We hope that its inclusion in the framework of CPEC would not only ensure availability of necessary funding but also its early implementation as Chinese are known for their speed in accomplishing the task undertaken by them.
The plan to hand over management of three big hospitals of the city to the provincial government is also a step in the right direction while establishment of a new university in Karachi would help mitigate high education related woes of the people.
It is all the more important both for the federal and the provincial government to make all out efforts to keep the MQP(P) on board because of its representative character and the stakes involved.
