Adil Najam
Speaking at inaugural ceremony of the Bagh Ibne Qasim in Karachi, General Musharraf announced that one of the tallest buildings in the world is planned to be built in Karachi.
How tall, you ask? Well, the word from the top is all of 1947 feet. One assumes that this number is no coincidence. I guess there will be something special on the 14th floor and somehow August will also be commemorated.
According to the Daily Times (Feburary 28, 2007):
One of the tallest buildings of the world will be constructed in Karachi, President Pervez Musharraf told a ceremony in connection with the inauguration of Bagh Ibn-e-Qasim here on Tuesday night. The president referred to a project pertaining to a beach and island’s development, and said this would be a mega project of international standard. He said that land for the project would be reclaimed from the sea and added that the centre of the project would be a 1,947-foot high building. “Inshallah we will make it. We must show the world that this is an emerging, progressive and dynamic country and we are second to none. We know how to handle ourselves. We know what progress and prosperity means and that is what we need to show to everyone,� Musharraf said. The project would not affect the environment, he added.
There has been, of course, much fanfare about the Centaurus 7-star Hotel project in Islamabad, and I remain skeptical about the hyperbole accompanying these projects until I actually see them completed. I will reserve my comments on the trumpeted building itself until I see actual plans and designs for it and until it actually materializes in reality. One has heard of too many such grandiose projects that never transpired to get all excited about them just yet. In this case, the legality and appropriateness of the sale of the island where this is to be built remains in question.
However, I find the logic presented by General Musharraf to be rather confusing, even disturbing. I certainly share his desire to be seen as “an emerging, progressive and dynamic country” that is “second to none.” However, it escapes me how building a huge tower will make as any of the above. Moreover, I have absolutely no idea what he means by “we know how to handle ourselves” or how constructing such a building will demonstrate that we do. Most importantly, I do know that “progress and prosperity” is to be measured by means other than the height of one’s buildings.
I do not wish to sound cynical. I really do not. If this actually happens, and if it is well designed and well executed, I will join with my fellow-Pakistanis in a collective bhangra. But, until then, I remain skeptical mostly because the motivation to build this seems misplaced. There could be many good reasons to build such a grand project. And there are many good ways to achieve the objective of demonstrating that Pakistan is “an emerging, progressive and dynamic country” that is “second to none.” But neither is the best match for the other.
To be fair, I think the other things that Gen. Musharraf said in the speech – which were not reported in the story about the tall building – were more on the mark on how to demonstrate that “we know what progress and prosperity means.” For example, according to The News story on the same event the President did show a deeper understanding of the city’s challenges and priorities:
President Musharraf listed a lack of clean drinking water, the electricity shortage, and a lack of cleanliness as Karachi’s current problems. He said the electricity problem would also be resolved, and that the city had required 2200 megawatts of electricity per year but now with a population of 15 million its power requirement has risen to 3300 megawatts. Karachi’s demand has increased by 50 percent, he added. But he said We will resolve this problem. Referring to the city’s water problem, he said he had provided K-III for 100 mgd water and now he would back up the K-IV water project. President Musharraf said that Karachi city should also be cleaned and for this purpose negotiations were be held with a private firm for a solid waste management project which would resolve the cleanliness problem.
However, the same story also points out that the President “directed environmental experts not to create hurdles in the development of the city” and went on to say:
If we have to make roads for the development of the city and for this if we have to chop the trees, we will do it but then we will also plant more trees.
He was obviously referring to environmental objections to the development of the islands off Karachi. This attitude of seeing environmental concerns as ‘hurdles’ to development does not bode well and is at least two decades outdated in the policy thinking on sustainable development. Having environment and development go together is not only possible; it is absolutely necessary for countries like Pakistan and cities like Karachi. So, President sahab, have your tall building if it pleases you; but, please, do not pit environment versus development in this way. It serves neither the interests of development, nor of the environment, and certainly not of Karachi or of Pakistan.
@king faisal:
Coal is the most polluting of all energy sources. The US and Europe are moving away from coal or developing advanced Clean Coal plants (and retrofitting old ones to be in compliance with strict EPA laws). In fact AES is involved in some of the new clean coal technology itself.
Although there is no official word on the technology they will use in the new Pakistan plant, almost all large coal fired plants use the traditional highly polluting coal burning techonology. It is interesting to note that AES is trying to convert its few smaller coal plants in the US to Clean Coal with a majority of its power generation in the US using Gas and other alternative methods.
Let’s think this energy development through before we blindly give out these contracts.
@Naveed,
I think this whole concept of “development” in Pakistan needs to be clearly thought through. Development is necessary for our survival but it has to be the right kind and with the right objectives. What we are seeing today is every chacha, mama, and pompous official rise up from their bed and annouce that they are building a new high-rise/tower in Karachi. Maybe they know something that we don’t, but I will ask this question to all the neo-development gurus out there, who is going to live and work in these gigantic towers and why do we need them?
Apart from speculative buyers or black money holders, will these new towers and real-estate projects provide ANY relief to the residents of Karachi? Let’s say this 1947 feet high tower is built and its developers arrange for adequate electricity (does any one have any freakin’ idea about how much power this one Tower will require?), natural gas and water supply. As I have said earlier it is almost impossible that any condo in this development would be available for less than Rs 1.5 crore. Hypothetically, also assume that all these condos are then sold out and populated by rich foreigners and Karachi residents. Is it fair to provide all these utilities to the rich while the rest of the 15 million resident’s utility services are in shambles? Will this not create further strain on the socio-economic and political climate of this beleagured city? Is this not apartheid in disguise?
I agree with Aqil completely and would state that these pie-in-the-sky schemes are just smoke screens. Almost all the machinery, supplies, and engineering manpower for these projects will have to be imported. The only thing we will provide locally is unskilled labour and cement (itself made in imported plants!). I visited the Bahria town complex the last time I was in Lahore and their folks told me that they had many problems with the local contractors therefore they had to bring in contractors and skilled labour from Malaysia to finish the houses and complexes being built! Go figure what the Emaar and Nakheel folks are going to do. Does any one realistically think that these foreign investors (speculators!) have the best interests of Karachi (its environment, it’s people, it’s marine life, knowledge workers) at heart?
Development is needed in Karachi but not hare-brained ideas like 1947 ft. tall towers and beach-front property for the rich. We need solid infra-structure projects with adequate compensation and training to build our job and knowledge base and provide livable conditions for the local population.
Maybe the engineerings in the forum can answer the following questions:
If you account for the pros – development etc, and discount for the cons – energy consumption, fire hazards, costs etc, then is there any net advantage of erecting such a huge building? Or is it simply from the ‘size-does-matter’ school of thought.
Also have any preliminary plans been released to the public? If yes, then is there any effort to make the structure energy efficient?
[quote comment=”35993″][quote comment=”35985″]My British friend who was accompanying me commented that it is only in Pakistan he has seen men indulging in public…and at the same time conversing with each other as well.[/quote]
To be fair, men do that at urinals in public bathrooms in the West all teh time. So, a little surprised that your British friend was surprised.[/quote]
Yes, and your friend has somehow managed to stay away from a gym or swimming pool locker room in his own country.
[quote comment=”35985″]My British friend who was accompanying me commented that it is only in Pakistan he has seen men indulging in public…and at the same time conversing with each other as well.[/quote]
To be fair, men do that at urinals in public bathrooms in the West all teh time. So, a little surprised that your British friend was surprised.