Karachi Port Trust Land Encroachment: Government Retakes More Than 60 Acres
More than 1,100 acres of Karachi Port Trust (KPT) land have been encroached upon in the past, according to the Ministry of Maritime Affairs in the National Assembly. This has been a long-standing problem, primarily due to political influences and other reasons.
Responding to a query by MNA Malik Shakir Bashir Awan, the ministry stated that the government, on orders of the Prime Minister, has initiated several anti-encroachment operations to recover state land. These are being carried out in collaboration with KPT, the Sindh government, the Port Security Force, Pakistan Rangers (Sindh), and the Sindh Police. Five large encroached areas and some small places are being targeted.
As of March 2025, approximately 60 acres of encroached land have been reclaimed successfully since the operation began on January 21. The reclamation efforts are ongoing, and steps are being taken to secure the reclaimed land for future utilization.
At the same time, the Port Qasim Authority (PQA) is also busy reclaiming its territory. In 2022, PQA was successful in retaking 17 acres of land from M/s Zaviar Enterprises with assistance from law enforcers and PQA Security.
However, some land remains disputed. For instance, 22 acres in Bijaar Kalmati Goth are currently in court, preventing any enforcement action until the verdict. Additionally, 7.84 acres in the Gulshan-e-Benazir Township Scheme Block-D, which were given to flood victims in 2010, are still occupied despite repeated attempts to vacate them.
The PQA is cooperating closely with the Sindh government to address these issues. A meeting on January 6, 2025, between Karachi commissioner office officials, Sindh anti-encroachment department officials, and PQA resulted in a joint survey by local authorities. The legal process for recovering the land is currently underway.
In addition, there has been a survey carried out by the Pakistan Rangers (Sindh) to quantify the level of illegal occupation on both lands of KPT and PQA.
