Karachi’s Garbage Overhaul Starts at Jam Chakro, Aims to Complete 5 Sections by December

Karachi is preparing to open the first mechanized landfill section at Jam Chakro. Mayor Murtaza Wahab expects all five sections to operate by December 2026, as the city shifts towards safer waste disposal with controls for polluted liquid and gas.

Karachi’s waste problem continues after rubbish leaves city streets. The Jam Chakro upgrade focuses on handling collected waste at a disposal site, with systems designed to control pollution.

Mayor Murtaza Wahab said Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah would inaugurate the first section on Monday, October 19, as preparations continued to bring the facility into operation.

Mayor Sets December Target for All Five Sections

The project includes five landfill cells, separate areas designed to receive and contain rubbish. Wahab expects all five to operate by December 2026, with construction still underway. The upgrade aims to move waste disposal away from open dumping.

How the New Site Aims to Reduce Pollution

The landfill design includes systems to collect gas from decomposing waste and manage polluted liquid. This liquid, known as leachate, forms when water passes through rubbish.

The Sindh Solid Waste Management Board, the provincial agency responsible for waste services, is developing the facility. A February government briefing listed liquid collection tanks, gas wells, waste reception areas and internal roads among the project’s components.

Where Garbage Goes After Collection

Jam Chakro is part of the Solid Waste Emergency and Efficiency Project, known as SWEEP, a joint program of the Sindh government and World Bank.

The wider program also covers garbage transfer stations. These sites provide a place to receive and sort collected rubbish before sending larger loads to disposal facilities. The program also seeks to improve safety at dumpsites and living conditions for people who earn a living sorting discarded materials.