The Sindh government is at odds with the federal government over the mega uplift projects for Karachi, with the former accusing the latter of making ‘false claims’ about the development of the city.

Sindh Information Minister Syed Ghani and Transport Minister Awais Qadir Shah, in a press conference in Karachi earlier today, accused the federal government of disregarding Karachi’s development projects, delaying the Green Line project, and making false statements.

This came a day after the inauguration of the much-awaited Green Line bus service on Friday for which Prime Minsiter Imran Khan came to Karachi as his PTI traded barbs with rival opposition parties over ''credit" for the controversial project.

Leading up to the inauguration, several federal ministers including Asad Umar accused the Sindh government of not completing the Bus Rapid Transit project on time and not “doing enough” during their tenure. Prime Minister Imran Khan had also said that he was “saddened to see” that over the years “the city of lights was ruined”.

“90% of the Green Line project was completed before the PTI. It took three years for PTI to complete the remaining 10% of the project,” Qadir said at today's press conference and asked whether anyone had reviewed the PC-I and revised PC of the BRT project.

The transport minister claimed that the federal government inaugurated the Green Line project in haste despite his request of letting the project to be completed at the stipulated time period. He claimed that the project needed 2-3 months to reach its completion.

“Lift escalators are not ready," he pointed while inquiring how could the government conduct a trial run of the service.

He challenged Planning Minister Asad Umar for a public debate on the cost of the project over the latter's remark that the Sindh transport minister didn’t turn up for a meeting on the project. Qadir insisted that the provincial government had provided the requisite funds for the project.

Qadir added that the provincial government has signed an agreement with Chinese and Turkish companies for buses for the Sindh Peoples Intra-district Bus Service – a feeder bus service. “In the first phase, we have ordered 250 buses at a cost of $38.5 million whereas the Centre bought 100 Green Line buses at a cost of $28.5 million,” he said.

It is expected that buses ordered by the Sindh government would arrive by February, he said, adding that they would soon conduct the groundbreaking ceremony for the Red Line service.

Meanwhile, Saeed Ghani responded to PM Imran’s remarks about the Bundal Island, Karachi Circular Railway (KCR), and the ration and health card schemes.

“The Sindh cabinet withdrew the letter issued to the government after the Centre, via an ordinance, tried to encroach all Sindh and Balochistan islands and leave the people abandoned,” Ghani said on PM Imran’s remarks that the Sindh government rethink the cancelllation of the NOC on the Bundal island project.

On delays in the KCR project, he pointed out that it was due the the federal government’s non-issuance of “sovereign letters,” which was a pre-requisite for the project to be included in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.

“Neither PML-N nor PTI issued the sovereign letters. Despite the Sindh CM’s reiterations for starting this [KCR] project and issuing letters at many fora, the government didn’t issue the sovereign guaranty letters because it wanted to start the ML-I project,” he added.

On the K-IV project, the Sindh transport minister alleged that the apparent delay on the side of the Centre resulted in the delayed start of the project. He pointed out that the PTI-led government had not accepted Sindh government’s suggestion of cost sharing on the project.

"Currently, the federal government is financing 50% of the project in line with what the provincial government had initially suggested," he added.

He also raised questions about the transparency of the federal government-spearheaded ration scheme where Kiryana stores are supposed to decide the subsidy cost. “We asked them [federal government] to review the BISP data and transfer the amount of Rs1,000 directly to the account of individuals in need.”