KCR revival delayed due to MDA-PR land dispute

[Lahore_Real_Estate]

Monday, March 29, 2010
By Imtiaz Ali

Karachi

The government’s efforts to revive Karachi Circular Railway (KCR) are reportedly being hampered by land issue between the Malir Development Authority (MDA) and the Pakistan Railways (PR). Donors are insisting on rehabilitating affected people prior to issuing loans, The News has learnt.

The main issue is that the PR’s land has been encroached upon, and JICA, the prospective donor, is insisting on arrangements for the settlement of the affected people before it provides financial assistance for the KCR, Land Utilisation Additional Secretary-III Dr Azhar Hussain said.

The dispute between the MDA and the PR over land in Bin Qasim Town had continued since 1982, and the chief minister’s advisor on planning and development, Dr Kaiser Bengali, had recently called a meeting to resolve the land issue. The MDA was of the view that it would withdraw its petition from the Sindh High Court if it were provided with alternative land and money for infrastructure development, Dr Hussain said.

Meanwhile, sources said that following the meeting about the KCR chaired by Dr Bengali on February 6, another meeting, chaired by Dr Hussain, was held on March 12 to expedite efforts to resolve the land issue.

It was decided that the MDA and the PR authorities will ‘urgently’ withdraw their cases in view of the decisions taken in the February 6 meeting. According to official sources and documents available with The News, the MDA has agreed to submit to a competent authority, a proposal pertaining to its land withdrawal, alternative land and incurred expenditure.

It was also decided that the City District Government Karachi and the Board of Revenue will continue to search for a ‘suitable’ alternative piece of land in lieu of the settlement of the land under question (350 acres in Deh Khanto,Bin Qasim Town). This land was selected for the rehabilitation of the people affected by the KCR project.

Officials said that the land dispute between the MDA and the PR was discussed at length during the meeting. The MDA representative informed the participants of the meeting about the withdrawal of the case pending before the SHC. He also raised the question of alternative land in lieu of withdrawal from 350 acres in Deh Khanto, and expenditure incurred so far on the land.

The Bin Qasim Town additional district officer (revenue) and Mukhtiarkar (revenue) informed the meeting that a piece of land as an alternative was identified in Deh Kotierero. This land, which belongs to the Sindh government was, however, declared ‘unsuitable’ by the MDA.

The land utilisation department will play an ‘active role’ after the withdrawal of the case and the approval of the Sindh chief minister for processing the case, an official privy to the decisions taken during the February 6 meeting told The News.