Baqar directs Hyderabad admin to vacate illegally occupied labour flats

KARACHI, Aug 25 (APP): Caretaker Sindh Chief Minister Justice (retd) Maqbool Baqar on Friday directed the district administration Hyderabad to vacate illegal occupation of the flats constructed for labourers and ordered repair and renovation of labour flats at Gulshan-e-Maymar.

He was chairing a meeting of the Labour Department which was attended by Caretaker Minister for Labour Omar Soomro, Advocate General Hassan Akbar, PSCM Raheem Shaikh, Advocate Shabir Shah, Chairman SRB Asif Memon, Secretary Labour Laeeq Memon and other officers concerned.

The chief minister was told that the Workers Welfare Board (WWB) was responsible for the development and construction of flats and houses, imparting free of cost quality education to workers’ children, financial aid to purchase the uniforms, shoes, books and bags, grants in aid for marriage of worker’s daughters, post-matric scholarships for workers’ children, financial aid to legal heirs of the deceased worker.

The meeting was told that from 2018 to 2023, an amount of Rs1333.130 million had been disbursed as grant-in-aid for marriage to 13322 cases of workers, Rs 244.456 million scholarships to 3175 students and Rs 2160.625 death grants for 4360 cases.

To a question, the chief minister was told that the WWB had 11565 flats, 6257 houses, 5443 plots, 23 schools and colleges, kidney center Landi being run by SESSI, NICVD Hospital Sukkur and 10 Vocational Training Centers. The chief minister was told that the 128 labour flats were under occupation in Hyderabad Labour Colony.

At this, the CM directed the Deputy Commissioner Hyderabad to vacate the flats and hand them over to the labour dept so that they could be allotted to the registered workers.

It was pointed out that some of the flats vacated from illegal occupation at Gulshan-e-Maymar needed repair and renovation.

The chief minister directed the caretaker Minister for Law Omar Soomro to visit the falts along with Secretary Labout and directed the Labour Department to repair them at the earliest for its allotment to the laborers.