Karachi Administrator Murtaza Wahab said that Sindh cabinet has approved new and bigger cemeteries in Karachi after it emerged that there was an acute shortage of burial space. He said that lack of burial space in 38 graveyards of Karachi is a serious problem.

Earlier, a report revealed that all graveyards in the megacity under Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) are filled to the brim. KMC Senior Director Municipal Services Mazhar Khan said that they had approached the Sindh government for acquiring land for new graveyards.

Murtaza Wahab said that lands for the new cemeteries have been identified while action had been taken against elements who were fleecing bereaved citizens finding a space to bury their loved ones.

He added that Sindh cabinet has also decided to establish “Shehr-e-Khamoshan Authority” which will oversee building graveyards according to planned models. Murtaza Wahab said they would ensure that the authority has representation of private sector as well.

It was worth mentioned here that the development of new graveyards in Karachi has fallen far short of its ever-growing population. As most cemeteries in the city are running short of burial space, prices of graveyards are registering an unstoppable increase so much so that buying a burial space has gone beyond the reach of people of average means.

In the metropolis, currently the price of one burial space is as high as Rs80,000, though the KMC has fixed Rs9,000 for one burial space for cemeteries under its control. Most graveyards in the city are now left with no space for burial, so clever grave diggers bury several bodies in one grave, and the time lag is short.

Credit : Independent News Pakistan-INP