HYDERABAD, Aug 18: The All Parties Action Committee (APAC), Kotri, SITE, has threatened to launch a protest movement if problems of residents of Khursheed Colony and Bhitai Colony were not resolved.

The APAC, a conglomerate of the Sindh Taraqqi Pasand Party, Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz, Awami National Party, Sindh Democratic Alliance and the Shehri Ittehad, said the two colonies were deprived of basic facilities.

Speaking at a news conference at the press club here on Saturday, the leaders of the Committee, Owais Ahmad Janwari, Zulfiqar Ali Janwari and others, said the residents of the colonies had been denied the facilities of clean drinking water, drainage system, health and sanitation and gas for the last 20 years.

They said the residents had to pay Rs250 to Rs300 for a water tanker and accused the Nazim and the Naib Nazim of Bulhari Union Council of taking commission from the “tanker mafia”.

They said the Nazim and the Naib Nazim were aware of the problems of the people but were not resoling them.

The APAC leaders demanded that the main water pipeline should be laid in the centre of the colonies to provide water connections to every house.

About the drainage system, the Committee leaders said it was non-existent and dirty water was accumulating in lanes and streets and had entered houses.

They said many people were suffering from stomach diseases and malaria due to the accumulation of dirty water.

They said huge dumps of garbage were also lying everywhere.

The APAC leaders said a 2,000-foot-long gas line had been laid in Khursheed Colony but it supplied gas to a limited number of residents and demanded that gas should be provided to the residents of both the colonies.

They regretted that local people were not being appointed in Kotri SITE factories and demanded that they should be given preference in employment.

They said the Social Security Hospital, Nooriabad, was earning Rs3 million per month but workers were denied proper medical treatment.

The Committee leaders accused the hospital administration of selling medicines to private hospitals.