Rasheed holds meeting with Sindh CM to discuss KCR, other matters

KARACHI: Railways Minister Sheikh Rasheed held a meeting with Chief Minister of Sindh Syed Murad Ali Shah at Chief Minister House here to discuss Karachi Circular Railway (KCR) project and other matters, ARY News reported on Monday.

The railways minister also visited KCR track along with Sindh government’s spokesperson Murtaza Wahab after meeting with the chief minister.

Murad Ali Shah during the meeting urged the federal government to transfer the Karachi Urban Transport Company (KUTC) to Sindh government. He said the federal government holds 60 % and Sindh 40% shares of the company.

The Karachi Urban Transport Company (KUTC), was formed in 2008 as a public company jointly owned by the federal and the provincial governments.

It was decided in 2018 to handover the company to Sindh, to accelerate the processing of the $2.5 billion soft loan approved by the Chinese government for completion of the long-delayed Karachi Circular Railway (KCR) project, under the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

He said the Joint Cooperation Committee (JCC) meeting of the CPEC is scheduled in April in Beijing, while a Chinese delegation is expected to arrive Pakistan in May.

The chief minister urged for settlement of the issue before the JCC session of the CPEC in April.

Sheikh Rasheed told chief minister that the federal government was prepared to handover the KUTC to Sindh after completing required formalities.

The minister also suggested to provide alternate homes on the railway land to the people affected by the KCR project.

The meeting also agreed over constitution of a committee over the matter. The Commissioner Karachi and Divisional Superintendent Railways will be members of the committee.

Before the committee’s session the provincial chief secretary and the secretary railways will hold a delegation level meeting over the matter.

Sheikh Rasheed later talking to media said that the affected people will be provided homes to the railways’ land and the issue will be resolved before the JCC meeting.

He said the Sindh government and the railways department will submit a joint statement in the Supreme Court in February 12 hearing of the case.

Sheikh Rasheed also discussed the mass transit projects in Karachi in meeting with the chief minister, provincial government’s spokesman Murtaza Wahab said. “They agreed to ensure an early completion of these projects”.

“A committee was formed to set modalities of the project and it will finalize all unresolved issues within one month,” he added.