Federal Minister for Planning and Development Asad Umar on Thursday rejected all claims made by PML-N Secretary General Ahsan Iqbal regarding his party’s contribution to the Green Line Bus Rapid Transit service, saying that the “only contribution” was the start of the track’s construction, a private TV channel reported.
“No work took place after that,” Umar remarked, following a visit to the project’s Operation Centre. “Perhaps their plan was for commuters to run from Surjani to Numaish,” the minister said. He added that all matters including operations, tickets and purchase of buses were completed by the incumbent government.
Speaking on the occasion, Governor Sindh Imran Ismail said that the PPP has “not even provided a single bus” to the people of Karachi in the last 13 years. Ismail said that the buses will undergo a 15-day trial period. After December 25, passengers will be able to purchase a ticket and travel.
Last week, taking to his Twitter handle Asad Umar gave Karachiites the good news that the premier will launch the much-awaited project on December 10. He wrote: “The PM @ImranKhanPTI will Inshallah inaugurate Karachi’s first modern transport system, greenline BRT, on the 10th of December.” Earlier in the day, PML-N’s Ahsan Iqbal had said the Green Line project was launched by the PML-N government in 2016 and its foundation was laid by then prime minister Nawaz Sharif. He said the project was supposed to reach completion in 2018, alleging that its execution was delayed because it was initiated by his party.
