The government authorities and Japanese donor agency have kept silence over the revival of Karachi Circular Railway (KCR) as Karachi Urban Transport Corporation (KUTC) has experienced a major change in it putting a question mark over the existence of the project.
Karachiites are still hoping against hope for the project as it was a ray of light in the shadow of pathetic public transportation system in the city. Here people are compelled to climb over rooftops of minibuses risking their lives in crowded old and rusty buses.
No advancement could be made on the project for months as Japan International Corporation Agency (JICA) had not yet responded to the minutes of high-level meetings held months back in Islamabad wherein JICA officials of Islamabad office physically participated from Japan through video conference, a KUTC official told PPI on Monday on the condition of anonymity.
“Political situation, especially sit-ins, could be the reason of this unannounced delay,” he said.
The official told that former managing director KUTC, who had been extensively working on the project with the foreign agency in the country and Japan as well since the starting of the project, had been assigned a post in Islamabad under Pakistan Railways.
“It is a routine thing in the government affairs where posts of bureaucrats are usually changed from time to time,” he said.
The government seems in a haste in providing relief to the citizens, or if there is some behind-the-scene agenda then it is unknown as there had been reports previously that it was mulling to take initiative to start the project itself. The government has 25 per cent share in the project – Karachi Metropolitan Corporation 15 per cent and federal government 65 per cent.
The official said the government had signed a MoU with a Chinese company over the project without taking KUTC, the company assigned the task to oversee the project, on board. So, the KUTC had reported it to the federal government.
While the project seems to be a far cry, the encroachers of KCR track have filed petition in the court against notice of removal of their living shelters. “Previously KUTC was considering to relocate the encroachers residing for decades, however, now it has been decided that the settlers would be given money in compensation,” he said.
On the other hand, though no heed is recently being taken on the project but the ongoing renovation work in the KUTC office has been witnessed by this scribe.