Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah on Saturday evening ordered police to open the routes leading to Sea View and Clifton areas of Karachi.
“If people remain peaceful, police would not irk them,” the chief minister said while issuing the directives.
He said that the youngsters should not be barred from celebrating the start of the New Year.
Murad Ali Shah also extended New Year’s greeting to the public, saying, “It would bring progress, prosperity and peace for people of Sindh”.
Earlier, it was announced by police that several major arteries would be kept closed to traffic and heavy police deployment will be made particularly at the Sea view/Clifton beach.
As 2016 comes to an end, tight security arrangements will be put into place in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad on New Year ’s Eve to ensure law and order and smooth flow of traffic.
Tens of thousands of people take to the streets to celebrate the New Year on the night of Dec 31.
The extraordinary security arrangements in Karachi, however, often put a damper on festivities as citizens suffer great inconvenience commuting through the city, whether they are participating in celebrations or not.
It was decided that general public will not be allowed to roam in areas leading to consulates in Clifton and Defence areas particularly at night, Inspector General South Zone Azad Khan had told private news publication.
There was, however, no specific security threat in Karachi for New Year ’s Eve, the DIG said.
Further instructions:
The DIG Traffic said that no parking will be allowed on main arteries such as Sharea Faisal, Abdullah Haroon Road, Dr Ziauddin Ahmed Road, Mai Kolachi Road, Korangi Road, M T Khan Road etc.
He added that heavy vehicles would be allowed to run in the areas only after 2am to prevent traffic congestion.
Traffic police warned that the use of vehicles or motorcycles without silencers or with broken silencers was strictly prohibited and anyone found using them would be handed over to local police for legal action.