Mehran Town (Urdu: مہران ٹاؤن ) is located in Korangi Industrial Area in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan.[1] Mehran Town is about 1150 acer (46 Meruba) in area and consist of 9 sectors 6A-6I. It has Malir River North-South, National Refinary in East and Korangi Industrial Area in North-West.
Merhran Town Housing Scheme was announced in 1973 by Karachi Development Authority (KDA). This was a gift by Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto for Overseas Pakistanis. 100% payment in advance was taken. Unfortunately KDA Couldn't provided basic livelihood necessities such as water, electricity and gas etc. till today. By the start of PPP, MQM and ANP allied government in 2007, Mehran Town has been encroached by land grabbers being support and backed by these political parties.
Different plitical land mafia are flourishing in Mehran Town during current PPP, MQM allied regime, where they have developed a knack of capturing every inch of vacant land they find.
Sector C of Mehran Town was initially planned for establishing industries in the area, however, almost 200 residential units have also been established due to the exploitation of land grabbers. Cottage industries have been formed on a few vacant plots as well. The population of the area is around 0.2 million. The locality has a mixed ethnic culture, where communities speaking Urdu, Sindhi, Pushto, Saraiki and Hindko co-exist. Mehran Town is a part of Union Council (UC) 1, Korangi Town and is situated near Bilal Colony and Sharifabad.
The locality has a total of nine sectors. The intensity of the ill planned mushroom growth of the housing units can be judged by the fact that the number of allocated plots in Sector 6-D of the area is 378 but in actuality, thousands of housing units exist here. This type of construction has naturally led to several problems. Majority of the residents are living here without any basic civic facilities. The sewerage system in the area is on the verge of collapse and in some areas, almost non-existent.
During the inhabitation in the area, which started some 20 years ago, earth from some empty plots was dug up by the land mafia, which now turns into a massive pool of sewerage during the heavy monsoon season. Only a few houses have a proper system of electricity. Majority of the inhabitants have taken connections of electricity through illegal cables (Kunda system). A great number of consumers rely on bamboos for carrying electricity cables at their homes instead of proper poles.
Majority of inhabitants don’t have access to water supply lines and they get water through water tankers. Only a small number of residents have access to legal water supply lines. However, these connections are not acquired through a legitimate process and are done illegally. Moreover, 50 per cent of the population has gas supply lines. The remaining population depends on gas cylinders for cooking and other purposes.
Most of the construction in this part of the city is single-storied. Cemented tiles have been used for the construction of roofs. The locality also lacks a garbage lifting system as garbage can be observed scattered around in the area. There is no school or dispensary in the area. The children of the town go to Bilal Colony and other areas for getting education. Likewise, the patients are also taken to Bilal Colony for basic treatment. The locality has a few small markets. The residents may buy grocery items, fruits, vegetables and other basic items of daily use from these places.
The residents of the area say that whenever they approach some civic authority for the solution of their problems, they are usually referred to some other authority and in this way the status quo is maintained in the locality. Furthermore, collective efforts for the solutions of problems are not made here as well. Whatever is done is done individually which proves fruitless in the end.
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