Sindh CM Murad blames city planners for 'ruining' Karachi

Why This Matters

Key context: <p>Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah on Saturday blamed urban planners for “ruining” Karachi, adding that he saw the metropolis vastly expand and deteriorate firsthand while growing up in it.</p> <p>In July 2025, a steering committee tasked with developing the Greater Karachi Regional Plan 2047 was <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/1921909">informed</a> that the new <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/1872403"><u>master plan</u></a> of the country’s commercial capital would be ready within two years.</p> <figure class='media w-full sm:w-1/2 media--right media--embed media--uneven' data-original-src='https://www.dawn.com/news/1841384'> <div class='media__item media__item--newskitlink '> <iframe class="nk-iframe" width="100%" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="height:250px;position:relative" src="https://www.dawn.com/news/card/1841384" sandbox="allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-popups allow-modals allow-forms"></iframe></div> </figure> <p>Addressing an event of the Sindh Master Plan Authority (SMPA) in Karachi, CM Murad said: “Making a master plan from scratch is easy. But considering Karachi’s deteriorated condition, it is a challenge for consultants, master planners and urban developers to fix those [conditions], and also for the executive bodies to implement the plan.”</p> <p>CM Murad noted that <a rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" class="link--external" href="https://smpa.gos.pk/who-we-are/">SMPA</a>, established under the Karachi Development Authority (KDA) in 1968, was formed to develop urban master plans for Sindh’s cities with recommendations from stakeholders.</p> <p>The chief minister said 14 master plans had been completed, but plans for Karachi and Hyderabad were under development. However, a post by the CM House quoted him as saying that master plans for 17 cities were complete, with work on 14 in final stages.</p> <figure class='media w-full w-full media-- media--embed media--uneven media--tweet' data-original-src='https://x.com/SindhCMHouse/status/2116519390745329860'> <div class='media__item media__item--twitter '><span> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"> <a href="https://twitter.com/SindhCMHouse/status/2116519390745329860"></a> </blockquote> </span></div> </figure> <p>Recalling that he grew up in Karachi and saw the metropolis’ expansion firsthand, Murad said, “I do not think any other city in the world has expanded as quickly as Karachi has, nor has any city in the world been ruined by planners as quickly as Karachi has.”</p> <p>The chief minister, whose PPP has ruled Sindh for about 15 years, stressed that Karachi needed to be improved. He contended that from the 1960s to the 1980s, it was a “very well-planned” city which attracted foreign visitors.</p> <p>Recalling an incident during the severe rains of 2020, Murad lamented that while travelling along a new dual-carriageway road from <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/1577415">Yousuf Goth</a>, he saw that people had set up shops along the side roads, the stormwater drains on either side of the main road and even on the median.</p> <p>“The planners did a very good job, but … a lot of roads have been declared commercial in the city and, to give people a livelihood, they are allowed to set up shops on stormwater drains for very cheap rent,” he said.</p> <figure class='media w-full sm:w-1/2 media--right media--embed media--uneven' data-original-src='https://www.dawn.com/news/1878513/karachi-the-city-without-a-plan'> <div class='media__item media__item--newskitlink '> <iframe class="nk-iframe" width="100%" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="height:250px;position:relative" src="https://www.dawn.com/news/card/1878513" sandbox="allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-popups allow-modals allow-forms"></iframe></div> </figure> <p>“I request the help of all stakeholders in [solving] this issue. Unless the entire city comes together to make it better, then we will not be successful.”</p> <p>CM Murad also regretted that on several occasions, development work faced challenges due to delays from utility service providers, including the water board.</p> <p>He also pointed out the lack of mapping of utility infrastructure: “There is no mapping anywhere.”</p> <p>Noting Karachi’s population of 25 million and how urban development work inconveniences Karachiites, the chief minister said that funds have been arranged to rework 143 roads, but the work had not started because of procurement issues, which he said, “take a lifetime, but that’s how things are”.</p> <figure class='media w-full sm:w-1/2 media--right media--embed media--uneven' data-original-src='https://www.dawn.com/news/2038976'> <div class='media__item media__item--newskitlink '> <iframe class="nk-iframe" width="100%" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="height:250px;position:relative" src="https://www.dawn.com/news/card/2038976" sandbox="allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-popups allow-modals allow-forms"></iframe></div> </figure> <p>However, he stressed the importance of forums under SMPA to discuss urban planning and implementation.</p> <p>“These types of forums, seminars and discussions will help us bring some improvement and right now, in every city … the mayors and divisional headquarters are all trying to emulate the development which has started in Karachi.”</p> This development from dawn.com highlights ongoing changes in the sector.