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Sindh CM Murad blames city planners for 'ruining' Karachi

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News Desk. (2026, October 31). Sindh CM Murad blames city planners for 'ruining' Karachi. Dawn. https://www.dawn.com/news/2041198/sindh-cm-murad-blames-city-planners-for-ruining-karachi

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Dawn · collected 2026-10-31 · by News Desk

Quick Summary

Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah criticized city planners for "ruining" Karachi during an event organized by the Sindh Master Plan Authority (SMPA). He highlighted that while creating a master plan from scratch is straightforward, implementing it in deteriorated conditions presents significant challenges. Shah emphasized the rapid expansion of Karachi since he was growing up there and lamented how quickly urban planners have contributed to its decline, noting issues like unplanned commercial setups on stormwater drains and delays due to utility service providers. He stressed the need for collaboration among stakeholders to improve the city's infrastructure.
Written by AI on 2026-10-31, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

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Story summary

Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah criticized urban planners for "ruining" Karachi during an event of the Sindh Master Plan Authority (SMPA) in Karachi. He noted that despite 25 million residents, implementing urban development projects is challenging due to procurement issues that delay work on 143 roads, though funds have been arranged. Established in 1968, SMPA was tasked with developing urban master plans for Sindh’s cities, and as of July 2025, a steering committee predicted the new Greater Karachi Regional Plan 2047 would be ready within two years. However, CM Murad emphasized that fixing the city's deteriorated condition is difficult, underscoring procurement delays as significant obstacles to progress.

Written for “Sindh CM Criticizes City Planners” on 2026-11-03, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.

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📰 Sindh CM Criticizes City Planners
Politics · 1 article(s) covering the same event.

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19
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0 of 19 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
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News Desk
360 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
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Topics

Karachi SMPA Sindh the Greater Karachi Regional Plan 2047 the Sindh Master Plan Authority

Subjects

Karachi GPE · 10× Murad PERSON · 5× SMPA ORG · 3× Sindh GPE · 3× Hyderabad GPE · 1× KDA ORG · 1× Murad Ali Shah PERSON · 1× the CM House ORG · 1× the Karachi Development Authority ORG · 1× the Sindh Master Plan Authority ORG · 1×

Narrative

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”.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-10-31
🔮 In July 2025, a steering committee tasked with developing the Greater Karachi Regional Plan 2047 was informed that the new master plan of the country’s commercial capital would be ready within two years.
2026-10-31 · Dawn
Sindh CM Murad blames city planners for 'ruining' Karachi · assertive framing

Claims (19 extracted, 0 hedged)

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. asserted
metropolis → blame → it
In July 2025, a steering committee tasked with developing the Greater Karachi Regional Plan 2047 was informed that the new master plan of the country’s commercial capital would be ready within two years. asserted
plan → task → years
Addressing an event of the Sindh Master Plan Authority (SMPA) in Karachi, CM Murad said: “Making a master plan from scratch is easy. asserted
Making → address → scratch
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.” asserted
bodies → consider → plan
CM Murad noted that SMPA, established under the Karachi Development Authority (KDA) in 1968, was formed to develop urban master plans for Sindh’s cities with recommendations from stakeholders. asserted
SMPA → note → stakeholders
The chief minister said 14 master plans had been completed, but plans for Karachi and Hyderabad were under development. asserted
plans → say → 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. asserted
plans → quote → stages
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.” asserted
Karachi → recall → planners
The chief minister, whose PPP has ruled Sindh for about 15 years, stressed that Karachi needed to be improved. asserted
Karachi → rule → years
He contended that from the 1960s to the 1980s, it was a “very well-planned” city which attracted foreign visitors. asserted
which → contend → visitors
Recalling an incident during the severe rains of 2020, Murad lamented that while travelling along a new dual-carriageway road from Yousuf Goth, 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. asserted
people → recall → median
“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. asserted
he → declare → rent
“I request the help of all stakeholders in [solving] this issue. asserted
I → request → issue
Unless the entire city comes together to make it better, then we will not be successful.” asserted
we → come → ?
CM Murad also regretted that on several occasions, development work faced challenges due to delays from utility service providers, including the water board. asserted
work → regret → board
He also pointed out the lack of mapping of utility infrastructure: “There is no mapping anywhere.” asserted
He → point → infrastructure
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”. asserted
things → note → lifetime
However, he stressed the importance of forums under SMPA to discuss urban planning and implementation. asserted
he → stress → planning
“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.” asserted
which → help → Karachi
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