Education City: Sepa to re-assess public concerns


By Mukhtar Alam

KARACHI: The government's environmental watchdog has decided to re-examine public concerns raised during a recent hearing on the environmental impact assessment (EIA) report on Education City scheme, a massive Sindh government project along the Super Highway, which has been in the works for about 15 years and already has stakeholders developing infrastructure, this emerged on November 2.

Located in Deh Chuhar, Gaddap, Karachi's Malir district, the Education City project spans 8,921 acres and aims to empower youth with knowledge, skills, and institutions. The project will house over 50 nationally and internationally acclaimed institutions. Its Master Plan has been prepared for the next 30 years, with three phases comprising commercial, residential, recreational, and amenities.

Concerns and assurances:

A source in the Sindh Environmental Protection Agency (Sepa) said that after hearing the community groups’ concerns in the Friday’s EIA event, authorities are delaying further follow up actions until they receive feedback from government departments.

At the public hearing on related EIA report on November 1, representatives from NGOs and local leaders expressed concerns about potential village relocations, agricultural activity disruptions and sand excavation from rivers concerned. They also feared that the archeological sites and environmentally crucial parameters would be compromised due to the project.  

Project details:

A literature survey showed that the investment department of the government had started working towards establishing the Karachi City's educational project in line with the Education City Act 2013, with the establishment of a project implementation unit for infrastructure development in the case of phase one about five years back.

“Then, about 3,500 acres of land had been earmarked for about 25 applicant institutions which were yet to get their respective land title from the government.”

As claimed in a related document: the EIA report has been prepared during entire Master Planning Stage of the education city project in question, which needed a Sepa authentication as well for owners during construction stage of each of the sub-projects such as educational institutions, river channelisation, roads, housings, urban forest development and commercial and residential buildings and others.

During the public hearing, project consultants (GCD Consulting Ltd) stated that only 33% of the land will be developed in most cases, with green areas and tree portions planned separately. Additionally, complete wastewater treatment and recycling for green areas have been planned, and municipal water demand will be 19 MGD.

The Education City Project Director Ibrar Sheikh assured that necessary precautions would be taken to address these concerns. He was reported saying no one will be shifted and disturbed without saving their interest and livelihood, if needed. “The Sindh Board of Revenue will also be contacted a fresh, if someone with legal land rights claims of being removed by force.”

The project proponent sides ended: The Sindh government considers Education City a hallmark project aimed at empowering the youth with knowledge, skills, and institutions, making investment in value-added human resources. The project is expected to be a hub of excellence with world-class infrastructure.

SEPA's Director (Technical) Imran Sabir, who presided over the proceedings, emphasised that grievances have been recorded and will be considered, with further reports sought from archeological, forest, and wildlife departments.



With an uninterrupted 23-year career in daily journalism (1991-2013), the author/editor of this blog currently serves as Editor of Social Track, a weekly newspaper focused on social sectors, based in Karachi. Holding a master's degree in Mass Communications from the University of Karachi (1990), his professional experience includes roles as senior reporter at Daily Dawn, Karachi (May 2001-August 2013) and Chief Reporter at The News International, Karachi (April 1991-May 2001). He has a strong background in development journalism, he has an extensive portfolio of news stories, analytical reports and features covering a wide range of sectors. He has had the privilege of covering numerous high-profile figures, including Pakistani presidents, prime ministers, army chiefs, foreign dignitaries, and VVIPs and attending conferences and workshops abroad. He began his journalism career in the early 1980s. Throughout his career, he has received several national awards from government and private organisations. He has contributed to various radio and TV/channel broadcasts and has also served as a trainer at workshops in Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad, focused on training journalists.

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