KARACHI, April 25: A large number of Baldia Town residents on Sunday staged a sit-in on a road in their locality in protest against persisting water shortage. The sit-in caused traffic mess all around the venue. The traffic had to be diverted to alternative roads and narrow streets.

Angry demonstrators were raising slogans against concerned KWSB officials for not taking steps to ensure an uninterrupted water supply to their locality, and thus adding to their miseries in the hot and humid weather.

Accusing the concerned valvemen of creating an artificial shortage, they alleged that valves were usually tampered with merely to give a boost to private tankers' business. They demanded of the city nazim and the KWSB managing director to take appropriate action against the indifferent, inefficient and negligent officials.

Upon receiving the news about the sit-in, the Board's MD, Shahid Salim, rushed to the scene and told the protesters that suspension of water supply to their locality had been caused by a rupture in the joint of a 15-inch dia pipeline.

He informed them that the damage was caused during some piling work in connection with the construction of Northern Bypass. The leakage from the crack, he added, had to be plugged. He held out the assurance that water supply would restored by midnight Sunday as the plugging work had already been completed.

Later, Mr Salim held a meeting with the senior officials of the Northern Bypass project and asked them not to carry out piling work without informing the KWSB as, he maintained, this often caused damage to pipelines.

Mr Salim, who was accompanied by the Deputy MD (Technical Services), Mr Suleman Chandio, and Chief Engineer Mr Asudomal, directed engineers to ensure that no organization did undertake digging work without obtaining the required NOC from the Board.

According to a report, suspension of water supply to the localities on Hub River Road, led to agitation by the affected people who resorted to burning tyres on roads and stoning of cars.

CM's Adviser on Local Government Wasim Akhtar, on hearing public complaints against the KWSB, expressed his concern over the situation and assured the affected people of his party's immediate support, said a press release issued by the Muttahida Qaumi Movement.

He ordered the Board's officials to ensure repair of the pipeline on a priority basis and restoration of water supply to the affected localities within 24 hours. Meanwhile, the MQM MNAs have criticized Jamaat-i-Islami nazims for creating misunderstanding about the MQM legislators and ministers by, what it called, staging agitation in certain areas and exploiting the situation.

They described the alleged JI move as an election stunt, and pointed out that managing water supply was the responsibility of the CDGK. They claimed that the formerly Central district's zila nazim and his deputies, belonging to the JI, were out to create misunderstandings about the MQM legislators.