KARACHI: Karachi Metropolitan Corporation has decided to construct a new council hall near Nipa Chowrangi, the foundation stone of which will be laid on 27th of Ramadan. In this regard, a committee has also been formed under the chairmanship of the Municipal Commissioner, KMC so that the council hall can be built to meet the needs of the next hundred years.

This was decided in a meeting chaired by Administrator Karachi Dr Syed Saif-ur-Rahman on Monday. Municipal Commissioner Shujaat Hussain, Director General Technical Services Syed Azhar Ali Shah, Director General Parks Junaidullah Khan, Senior Director Media Management Ali Hasan Sajid, Director City Warden Raja Rustom, Senior Director State Sumeira Asif, Senior Director Imran Siddiqui, Director Council Abdul Rab, Team leader USAR Humayun and other officers attended the meeting.

Administrator Karachi said that the existing council hall was facing lack of space for the newly elected members and this hall was constructed 92 years ago in 1932, the seats of which were increased from time to time. All former mayors, deputy mayors, administrators, municipal commissioners, DCOs and directors of the council will be invited to the foundation lying of the new council hall so that all these personalities along with special guests will be present on the historic occasion.

He said that he will request the Sindh government to provide special funds for the construction of this council hall so that its construction can be completed as soon as possible. The meeting was told that when the municipality was given the status of a municipal corporation in 1933, the number of seats was 57 and there was enough capacity in the hall. In 1953, the municipal seats were increased to 100, in 1960 the number of seats was reduced to 58. increased to 103.

Under the changed local government system in 1979, the number of local government seats in Karachi increased to 166, for which there was adequate capacity in the hall. When the two-tier system came into effect, the Metropolitan Corporation Hall had 77 seats.

In 2001, the new municipal district system came into force, the number of council members increased to 255, for which there was not enough room in the hall, so in December 2004, the city council hall was renovated and the number of seats was increased.

Administrator Karachi said that the number of council members to be formed in the future will be 364 while the capacity of seats in the council hall located in the main office of kmc is 310. Opportunities are available. He said that the local government is the nursery of democracy and there are opportunities to learn the parliamentary system.