PM Khan in Karachi on maiden visit

Prime Minister Imran Khan arrived in Karachi on Sunday afternoon on his first visit to the metropolis since being elected premier.

PM Khan, who was accompanied by special assistant Naeemul Haq, was greeted at the airport by Sindh Governor Imran Ismail and Chief Minister Murad Shah.

From there, he went straight to the Quaid's mausoleum, where he laid a floral wreath and offered fateha. He also signed the guestbook at the mausoleum.

PM Khan met President Arif Alvi at State Guest House along with other officials, and chaired high-level meetings to review progress on federal government-funded projects in the city, and on law and order, Radio Pakistan reported.

While chairing a meeting on the law and order situation, PM Khan expressed concerns about a reported surge in street crime in the metropolis and called for coordinated efforts to purge the city of criminal activities.

The premier took strong exception to the cases of abduction of children in the city. He sought coordinated action against abductors, the urgent recovery of children and the provision of relief to parents.

Governor Ismail, CM Shah, Karachi Corps Commander Lt Gen Shahid Baig Mirza, Director General (DG) Rangers Maj Gen Muhammad Saeed, Sindh Chief Secretary Azam Suleman Khan and Sindh Inspector General Police Kaleem Imam, as well as other concerned civil officials, attended the meeting.

The chief secretary gave a detailed briefing on the law and order situation in the province in general and Karachi in particular, which followed a presentation by the DG Rangers on the Karachi operation.

The prime minister appreciated measures being taken for cleanliness in the metropolis. He directed that the efforts be expedited in order to provide relief to the people.

Earlier accompanied by the Sindh governor and chief minister, the prime minister planted a sapling on the premises of the State Guest House. He also held a joint meeting with the two officials.

The premier will also attend a fundraiser dinner for the Diamer Bhasha dam at Governor House today.

The PM's visit comes a day after President Arif Alvi, a former MNA from Karachi, visited the metropolis and tasked Sindh Governor Imran Ismail with monitoring federal government-funded development projects and vowed to make his hometown’s infrastructure just like other mega cities in the world.

A statement issued after the meeting quoted Alvi as saying: "The Sindh governor from now on will monitor the progress of federal government-funded development projects in Karachi and other parts of the province for their timely completion."

Governor Ismail during the meeting said that the federal government would "take into account the feedback and opinions of provincial and city governments while executing its projects."