KARACHI: Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Karachi chief Monem Zafar has said that construction and rehabilitation work on more than 1,005 streets and roads has begun in Gulshan-e-Iqbal Town under JI’s administration.
Speaking at a press conference at the Town Office on Tuesday, alongside JI East District chief Naeem Akhtar and Town Chairman Dr Fawad, he said the project would involve laying asphalt and paver blocks on 10.3 million square feet of roads.
He said work is also underway on sports facilities, youth centres, model dispensaries, parks, model markets, urban forests and playgrounds for young people.
Steps are being taken to turn KDA Market into a model market and to improve Dhoraji Market, he added, saying Gulshan-e-Iqbal Town would be made truly green.
Despite a lack of powers and resources, Monem Zafar said, JI completed re-carpeting of 42 roads and carpeting of around one million square feet of roads in Gulshan-e-Iqbal Town over the last three years. Two youth centres and two model neighbourhoods were also built, thousands of streetlights installed, and various development projects including the restoration of parks stands completed.
He said over Rs90 million had been spent on the welfare of town employees, including payment of medical, pension, bonus and other dues. Damaged vehicles, snorkels, tractor-trolleys and other machinery handed over to the town had been repaired and restored, he said.
A water supply project was completed at a cost of Rs200 million, he said, adding that unless local bodies are empowered, a permanent solution to people’s basic problems is not possible. He said JI’s clear stance is that empowered local governments should be established across the country, including Karachi, and that JI would live up to the trust placed in it by the people of Karachi.
Zafar said record development work was also carried out in the area during the mayorship of Naimatullah Khan. Construction of Rashid Minhas Road and other roads was among the prominent works of that period, and those roads are still in excellent condition. He said JI has always used available resources honestly and as a trust for public service.
He said the people of Gulshan-e-Iqbal also expressed confidence in JI’s leadership in the 2005 local government elections, but the results were changed and Gulshan Town was occupied. Despite that, JI continued its public service and is still working beyond its resources and powers.
He said Gulshan-e-Iqbal Town currently faces several problems. In the past, Gulshan Town comprised 13 union councils, while now it is limited to eight union committees. More than three years have passed since the local government was established, but there has been no substantial increase in the amount of Octroi Zila Tax (OZT). During the first two years, the town spent about Rs70 million from its own resources to pay employees’ salaries. It is not fair to expect local bodies to solve public problems without providing them adequate resources, he said.
The JI leader said University Road, which passes through the middle of Gulshan-e-Iqbal Town, has been dug up for the Red Line BRT project, severely affecting the entire area. The project, started in 2021, was to be completed in October 2023, but it has not been completed yet. The provincial government and the transport minister have given different dates, but the project does not seem likely to be completed even in the next three years, he said.
He said the University Road was previously a good road, which was dug up and created difficulties for citizens. If it is rebuilt now, it would be restoration of an already existing road and not completion of a new project, he added. He said that in 2019, JI’s Public Aid Committee ran a vigorous campaign for the construction of University Road, as a result of which construction work was completed. Today, once again, citizens are facing dilapidated roads, traffic jams and difficulties in commuting.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026