THATTA: 'Buildings dept short of funds'
THATTA, Jan 26: The Sindh buildings department is responsible for carrying out maintenance of 2,111 residential and non- residential buildings. The minimum cost of maintenance comes to Rs471.265 million per year but only Rs102.54 million was allocated for 2002-3 which is about 1/5th of the amount.
This was stated by buildings department chief engineer Neezar Ali Khwaja here on Monday while talking to this correspondent on the state of government buildings, particularly in Thatta district.
He said that the lack of sufficient funds had resulted in leaving the buildings without crucial repair and reducing their designed life. He said that with the revision of rates, procurement of quality materials and establishment of quality control laboratories, the maintenance cost could be reduced and quality of work ensured. He contended that in view of salinity and water-logging, Thatta district needed more funds for the maintenance of its buildings.
POLICE: The Thatta police, despite a number of raids in thick woods, could not find any trace of two trader cousins, Ghazanfar and Sarfaraz, who had been kidnapped 45 days ago.
After visiting the parents of the hostages on Monday, People's Party Parliamentarian MPAs Sassui Palijo and Humera Alwani said in a press release that bandits were virtually ruling the district.
They deplored that the administrations had remained silent spectator on the miseries of the people. They demanded that concrete efforts should be taken to recover the kidnapped cousins.