KARACHI: Two students hurt as car falls into dug-up road
By Arman Sabir
KARACHI, March 21: Two college students suffered injuries when their car skidded into a dug up drain in Gulshan-i-Iqbal on Wednesday morning. Their colleagues then came out on the streets to protest against the hazard.
The students, Jauhar Shah and Altaf Shah, were injured when they tried to park their car along the road, which was dug up. The car skidded into a 10-foot drain filled with sewage along the boundary wall of the Ghazi Foundation College near Moti Mahal. Both students were rescued and taken to a private hospital.
When news of the incident spread in the college, the students staged a protest against the town administration. They accused it of delaying the drain’s repair. The students said the drain had caused similar incidents in the past. The angry students raised slogans against the town administration and did not allow a crane to extricate the vehicle from the drain unless the town administration gave a deadline when it would be repaired.
An official of the college, Kaleem Awan, said there were more than 1,200 students enrolled in the institution in two shifts. He said the college had written to the authorities several times, requesting its immediate repair.
He said the road along the college wall and adjacent houses was dug up almost a year ago as the underground drainage line had choked. The workers cleared the choked lines and left the dug up road, which has become a constant threat to people using the road.
The college administrator talked to the town administration, which assured that it would take immediate measures to repair the drain. The students then calmed down test and returned to their classes.
Naib Town Nazim Shoaib Akhtar, who is in charge during the nazim’s absence, when asked said: “The road might have caved but we will soon repair it.” However, he did not say when the repair will be completed.
