Everywhere was darkness inside the building, which was full of hustle and bustle till a few months back. In the absence of basic utilities -water, electricity and gas – 15-storey Nasla Tower wore a deserted look, standing at the intersection of Sharae Faisal and Shahrah-i-Quaideen.
Some of residents- only tenants – are busy in shifting their households from the building, whose life is uncertain now after the Supreme Court had ordered to demolish it. Majority of the residents are still present in their flats.
Nasla Tower housed 44 apartments. Of them, 14 were rented out by the owners while in remaining 30 flats their owners were living.
The deadline set by the authorities to vacate the structure had expired last night. But, the implementation of the apex court orders, which also include demolition of the tower by controlled blasting till Nov 1 seems a distant dream. The commissioner is already on the hunt for a demolition company, which can raze the structure safely. In this connection, an open bid has been invited in the newspapers by the authorities to find the demolition firm.
The task of implementing the SC orders, which include evacuation of the tower, its safe demolition and submission of compliance report to the court in the next hearing seems impossible for the Sindh government and other authorities concerned.
Earlier, a meeting was held under the chairmanship of Commissioner Karachi Iqbal Memon to implement the orders of the Supreme Court regarding the demolition of Nasla Tower.
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The meeting was attended by senior officers of FWO, Sindh Buildings Control Authority, Pakistan Rangers. Minerals and Mines and Encroachment Department, Karachi Municipal Corporation, Prof. Dr. Abdul Jabbar Sangi of NED, besides Deputy Commissioner East Asif Jan Siddiqui, SSP East Qamar Raza Jaskani, Assistant Commissioner Ferozeabad Asma Batool, General Secretary of Civic Organization Amber Ali Bhai and others participated.
The commissioner also wrote to the FWO seeking assistance in razing the illegal building.
He requested FWO Director General Brigadier Qasim Nawaz Gondal to furnish technical and seismic feasibility of Nasla Tower within two days for taking necessary action to demolish the building.
The commissioner also requested him to provide the ground support to the divisional and district administration for the demolition process.