KARACHI, June 18: The city government on Sunday prepared an emergency plan to cope with expected rains in Karachi. The City Nazim, Syed Mustafa Kamal, has asked officials concerned to prepare lists of manpower and machinery for their respective departments, so that snap actions could be taken during any emergency.
In this regard, a meeting of EDOs was summoned in the camp office.
He said that emergency centres should be set up in the city nazim’s camp office, DCO office, and the city government’s central office to ensure better coordination among different departments for early redressal of complaints. These emergency centres would work round the clock.
He directed the Fire Brigade, Works and Services and Parks departments to be prepared for any emergency situation and take steps to ensure that rainwater was pumped from streets if and when such a situation arose.
The meeting was told that work was initiated to clean rainwater drains and drains of the city.
They drains include the Soldier Bazaar Drain and its four branches; the City Railway Station Drain, Azam Basti Drain, Mehmoodabad Drain and its further sub-branch, the Naval Colony Drain.
Others include Orangi Drain Main (from Banaras Chowk to Lyari River), Orangi Town Drain, Kaliri Drain, Pitcher Drain, Essa Nagri Drain, Welfare Colony Drain, Khawaja Ajmair Nagri Drain, and North Karachi Sector 11-A Drain, Baldia Drain-I, II and III, Sher Shah Drain, Kala Board Drain, Malir City Drain, Aziz Bhatti Park Drain, Pir Pagara Road Drain, Korangi Drain I and II, Haroonabad Drain, Hub Drain, Sharea Faisal Drain, Mujahid Colony Drain, Niher-i-Khayyam, Chakor Drain, Haideri Drain, Ship-owners College Drain, Manzoor Petrol Pump to Islamia Kanta Malir near Quaidabad Drain, Muslim Rajput Colony Drain, Petrol Pump Drain, Qalandari Drain, Madina Colony Drain, Gulshan-i-Iqbal Sector 13-D Drain, Pirabad Drain, Mianwali Colony Drain, Ziauddin Hospital Drain, Karimabad Drain, Water Pump Drain, NIPA Chowrangi Drain, Manzoor Colony Drain, and Songal Drain.
New deptt: A separate department was created in the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board to take care of matters related to rainwater drains. This new department will be headed by an officer of the chief engineer level.
In this regard, the City Nazim, Syed Mustafa Kamal, on Saturday held an emergency meeting. The DCO Karachi, Fazalur Rehman, and KWSB Managing Director Brig Iftikhar Haider also attended the meeting.
More than 63 drains in all towns of Karachi were handed over to the KWSB, which started cleaning them. Related staff and funds have already been transferred to the new department.
The meeting was told that emergency steps had been taken to clean the drains before the upcoming monsoon rains.
An assistant executive engineer was appointed to ensure that work continued on a permanent basis.
It was said that the total length of drains in Karachi measured some 0.7 million feet.
The nazim said that from now on the KWSB would be responsible for these drains, their repair and maintenance.
He said that drain-clearing work should be carried out round the clock.
FUNDS RELEASED: The Sindh government is said to be taking effective and timely steps for providing basic facilities to people and expediting development activities.
Local government organisations are being provided funds for the purpose under the Annual Social Programme.
The Programme Support Unit of the Sindh Finance department has so far released Rs242 million to 79 out of 119 TMAs with the remaining to get funds in the next few weeks.
These funds are being released for supply of clean drinking water, disposal of sewage, and cleaning of respective areas to cope with problems of health and sanitation.
Initially, the town/taluka administrations were given 50 per cent of allocated funds while the remaining half would be given to them keeping in view their performance.—PPI/APP
