KARACHI: Lyari UCs members to launch protest: Water shortage
By Latif Baloch
KARACHI, Nov 11: Faced by acute water shortage problem in almost all the 11 Union Councils, elected local bodies’ members of Lyari Town met again on Saturday evening to find ways and means for a solution.
The meeting decided to observe a black day on Monday by putting black arm bands as a mark of protest against continuing water shortage in Lyari Town.
Last week, Nov 10 was set as a deadline to press the KWSB to settle the issue, but they have not received any response so far.
They criticized the KWSB authorities for their claim that there was no water shortage in the locality, saying that instead of finding a solution, they blamed them for “making it a political issue.”
Under the present circumstances, they said that there was no other option but to adopt the course of a peaceful protest.
At a meeting last week, the local bodies’ members of Lyari Town warned the KWSB officials that if they failed to respond to their demand by Nov 10, they would consider other options, including resignation from their offices in support of their just demand.
The meeting on Saturday evening strongly condemned the negative attitude of the KWSB high-ups for their remarks against Lyari’s water problem.
They rejected the impression that the issue was being brought up for political reasons and stated that a high-level team should be constituted to inquire the cause of water shortage in the area.
The emotionally-charged meeting was addressed by the Nazims and Naib Nazims of 11 UCs, besides the Naib Nazim of Lyari Town. Many of them offered their resignations.
Chaired by the Lyari Town Nazim, the meeting also decided to hold a rally on Wednesday in front of the KWSB office. The call was unanimously endorsed by all the councillors and Nazims and Naib Nazims.
Some councillors expressed their concern over the deteriorating civic conditions of Lyari Town, saying that whenever elected people came to power, the bureaucracy hatched conspiracies against them in order to dislodge them.
They said that the KWSB had made it into a political issue by adopting a biased policy against the people of Lyari on account of political reasons.
The areas worst hit by water shortage are: Eidu Lane, Ali Muhammad Mohalla, Shah Baig Lane, Phool Patti Lane, Mandra Mohalla, Daryabad, Nayabad, Rexer Lane, Gul Muhammad Lane, Haji Sher Muhammad Road, Chakiwara, Rangiwara, Tughlaq Lane and parts of Baghdadi.
SEWERAGE: The meeting also pointed out that the KWSB had also failed to rectify the sewerage system. They pointed out that in some of the localities, the streets were inundated with sewage, creating hurdles for the residents.
A survey showed that almost all storm-water drains in different parts of Lyari are not only uncovered but full of filth and garbage, as they have not been cleaned in years.
Besides looking ugly, the most horrible aspect is that these unchecked ‘monsters of filth’ have so far swallowed up several children.
The layers of garbage and filth that have accumulated over the years in these drains have become so thick and hard that they can sustain the weight of a normal child. But at some places, the layers are weak and marshy and have engulfed children who step on them. Residents said that so far four children have drowned in a drain at Haji Peer Muhammad Road, adjacent to an abandoned KWSB pumping station.
These open manholes also cause injuries to motorists and passers-by. “It seems that we are being deliberately neglected and deprived of basic civic facilities,” said an aged resident, Noor Muhammad.
