Sindh Chief Minister (CM) Murad Ali Shah has talked about the viral video that shows electricity poles in the midst of a Hyderabad road, stating that the government had deliberately constructed the road before electricity poles were removed to put pressure on authorities responsible for shifting them.
The video sparked criticism on social media.
Speaking about the controversy, Shah said that the government had initially faced difficulties in acquiring land for the road project.
“There was this road in Hyderabad, and we wanted to construct the road. They weren’t giving us land, so the Chief Secretary specially went to the Cantonment Board and the military authorities and got allocation for the land,” he said.
Shah said the Sindh government then approached the Hyderabad Electric Supply Company (HESCO), provided funds and asked the company to remove electricity poles. “Then we went to HESCO, gave them money, and asked them to remove the poles. They were not doing it,” he added.
The chief minister said the government then decided to complete the road first, hoping that public attention would put pressure on the concerned authorities to shift the poles.
“So we said, ‘Let’s construct the road first so that they are under pressure.’ So this was all a grand plan,” Shah claimed.
He thanked the media and social media users for highlighting the issue, saying the attention had helped push the removal process forward. “I have learned that out of the 100 poles, 25 have been removed today,” he pointed out.
“Thank you very much, media. Thank you very much, social media, for helping us out, because these federal authorities don’t listen to us. They do listen to the media.”
Shah said the road had become popular among local residents even before its completion because it provided a shortcut between two points and saved them around 15 minutes.
“That road, Insha’Allah, will be complete soon with the poles removed,” he said.
He also encouraged the media to highlight similar issues, saying that public attention could help resolve problems involving other agencies.
“So please point out all such mistakes, and we’ll take advantage of this,” Shah said.
Videos circulating on social media have also shown workers removing electricity poles from the road.
