In the wake of growing criticism over the recent building collapse in Lyari and the underperformance of the Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA), its Director General Ishaq Khowro has been removed from his position.

Shahmir Khan Bhutto has been appointed as the new Director General of the SBCA.

The decision comes as authorities face intense public outrage over building safety and regulatory failures in Karachi after a five-storey residential building recently collapsed in Lyari, claiming 27 lives.

The incident raised questions about SBCA’s enforcement of building by-laws.

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An SBCA team visited the collapse site in Lyari, where Inspector Zulfiqar Shah inspected the damaged structure.

However, when questioned by journalists about the number of other dangerous buildings in the vicinity, Shah expressed ignorance, saying, “Only the director can provide that information.”

He added that, so far, only one nearby building had been marked for demolition.

When asked how many structures were demolished in the past year, Shah admitted he had no idea.

Meanwhile, a separate incident in Kharadar nearly resulted in another catastrophe.

Residents reported tremors in a nearby heritage building after a group allegedly linked to the builder mafia attempted to illegally demolish the sealed structure near a coal depot using heavy machinery.

Locals contacted the Sindh Department of Archaeology and police. A team led by Assistant Director Faisal Ali responded promptly.

According to the department, with police assistance, two individuals involved in the attempted demolition — Khan Gul and Luqman — were arrested.

An FIR was registered under the Sindh Cultural and Heritage Preservation Act, 1994, based on a complaint filed by Archaeology Officer Mushtaq Ahmed.

The report states that the sealed heritage building was illegally de-sealed and damaged by the builder mafia.