KARACHI: Sindh Prime Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has decided to acquire the land of the Metropole Hotel to avoid building a skyscraper in its place and instead develop a modern park for children and the elderly.
He also decided to acquire a part of the Sindh Club in the corner to extend the left turn of the road from the Metropole Hotel to Clifton to facilitate the flow of traffic. He ordered the Karachi commissioner to speak with the hotel owners and with the management of the Sindh Club for acquiring their land and informing him within 10 days.
These decisions were made by Shah while presiding over a meeting on Wednesday here at the House of the Chief Minister. The meeting, which was attended by the Local Government Minister Nasir Hussain Shah, the adviser to CM Murtaza Wahab, the president of P&D, Nahid Shah and experts from the P&D department and other departments, also discussed the need to build two underground passages, one at the Metropole road sign and the other at Avari Hotel to make a no-stop sign for traffic coming from Clifton to Saddar and for Saddar traffic to Cantt station, respectively.
The commissioner has 10 days to negotiate with the hotel owners, the administration of the Sindh Club for land acquisition
Speaking on the occasion, the prime minister said that the terrain of the Metropole Hotel was located in the center of the four most important and busy roads, where the volume of traffic remained considerably high almost all day and as such "construction of any building high-rise on the ground of the hotel would cause greater traffic congestion in the area and create serious environmental problems. "
Shah said that the construction of a beautiful park for children and the elderly would be the best for the city's environment, which was becoming increasingly polluted. "From now on, all projects," he said, would be developed taking into account the city's environmental conditions, the capacity of the roads and the sewerage system and the supply of all other facilities.
Referring to the traffic jam problem on the left turn of the road from Metropole to Clifton when traffic going to Club Road stops at the traffic signal and blocks the entire turn and causes frequent traffic jams, he suggested that a part of the Sindh Club The corner is also acquired to extend the turn to the left of the road.
Two planned underpasses
The prime minister said there was an imperative need for two underpasses, one on Abdullah Haroon Road at the Metropole Hotel traffic sign so that traffic coming from Clifton to Saddar would be free of signs and the other could be built at the Avari Hotel to Fatima Jinnah. Road to give way without signal to traffic from Saddar to Cantt station.
The prime minister ordered the president of P&D, Nahid Shah, to prepare estimates and proposals for the underpasses and submit it for further action.
He said he was also considering the construction of an underpass on Club Road towards Sultanabad so that traffic between the two hotels has no signal.
Bridge over driveway
The prime minister said that the destruction of the Korangi Road by the torrential flood of the hill had created serious problems for the people of Korangi.
He has completely disconnected Korangi from the Defense area. The alternative route used by the people of Korangi was to pass through the industrial area where traffic jams were a routine matter.
He said he wanted to build a bridge on the road so that traffic flow and movement of people could be smooth. He developed a map of the area and decided to prepare a detailed plan after adopting engineering solutions.
The prime minister was told that the Yellow Line project had also suggested the construction of an overpass from the Baloch Colony bridge to Korangi. This would also cover the road.
Given this, the prime minister ordered the P&D department to consult with the people of the Yellow Line project and, meanwhile, would build a bridge on the road. "He would prepare his sketch taking into account all the traffic requirements of the area and deliver it to the P&D to advance through his experts," he said.
Posted on Dawn, September 5, 2019
Source: https://www.dawn.com/news/1503526/sindh-govt-to-replace-metropole-hotel-with-modern-park-for-children-elderly
