Truck terminal along Northern Bypass: KPT seeks 600 acres of land from Sindh govt

ISLAMABAD: Karachi Port Trust has requested 600 acres of land from the Sindh Government to establish a truck terminal along the Northern Bypass in Karachi.

Chairman of KPT stated this in a meeting of the National Assembly Standing Committee on Maritime Affairs held under the chairmanship of MNA Abdul Qadir Patel.

The KPT chairman stated this when the chairman of the committee and member of the panel Rafiullah, raised the issue of traffic congestion at Maripur Road and Kemari areas, caused by heavy traffic of dumpers and trawlers in the vicinity of the port area to upload their consignments for countrywide transportation.

KPT handles all-time high cargo in FY25

On a query that KPT has enough land to build a truck stand within the port area, Federal Minister for Maritime Affairs Muhammad Junaid Anwar Chaudhry said this land of KPT has been allocated for another port terminal, and his Ministry already conveyed this to the Sindh Government as well.

KPT Chairman was also of the view that building a truck terminal within the city would reduce the traffic congestion caused by heavy vehicles’ movement. He said that KPT has already identified 600 acres of land on the Northern Bypass for the Chief Minister of Sindh.

“Right now, if someone’s consignment reaches the port and he calls for 200 trucks or trawlers, all of a sudden, more than 250 trucks start heading towards the port, causing massive traffic congestion in the city and causing accidents as well in which precious lives are lost, and the enraged people, sometimes, burn these dumpers,” he observed.

The Chairman of KPT suggested that if the terminal was built, then only those trucks would be allowed to come into the city when their consignments were ready. He said that initially, through the issuance of slips to trucks would be allowed, and once the system is put in place, they would be issued an e-tag for their entrance into the city. He said that if the Sindh Government allocates the land, they would make this terminal operational within two months.

The committee decided to summon the Commissioner of Karachi along with a report on the proposal under consideration by the provincial government to ease the traffic congestion.

The committee directed the Ministry of Maritime to clearly define the composition of the Authority being established under the Environmentally Sound Management of Inventory of Hazardous Materials in Ships Bill, 2025. The committee termed the present provision of Authority under Section 3 of the Bill as vague, and it needs to be properly defined in terms of its composition and functions.

While examining the proposed Bill clause by clause, the committee observed that ratifying the international convention was an obligation, and bringing the local laws in consonance with the international commitment is imperative.

The committee further observed that the ministry should convey to the provinces to ensure the protection of the environment and labour rights in their legislation. The committee also sought the record of consultation carried out by the ministry with provinces and other stakeholders on the proposed bill. It was decided to discuss the bill in the next meeting of the National Assembly’s panel.

The committee, while discussing the issues related to KPT, supported the continuation of the ongoing drive against encroachment on the KPT land. The committee also agreed on the inclusion of a representative of Sindh Rangers in the committee already constituted under the Commissioner of Karachi on encroachments.

The committee was apprised that the court cases on encroached property were being rigorously pursued. Besides this, we are also going for an out-of-court settlement, which has been opted for by some litigants. It was also informed that an out-of-court settlement was agreed upon after upholding the best interests of the government.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025