KARACHI: A lack of water in most of Karachi has remained a problem for years. But not, say city planners, as much due to a lack of supply from the source as due to prevailing corruption in the departments concerned and the mismanaged distribution system. Since the main supply of water is in the hands of the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board, the conclusion to be made is that it is this body which has failed to fulfil its responsibility. So it was rather a surprise when participants at a workshop were informed that the KWSB jointly with the city government had engaged to carry out a ‘feedback on service quality’ with the aim of identifying their own weaknesses in providing the utility service.

A stakeholder consultative workshop, which included representation from civil society, the media and the service utility itself was held on Wednesday to get feedback on how to bring about a sustainable water sector reform in Karachi. At the workshop was unveiled an efficient system of accountability which is titled The Citizen Report Card (CRC), a module that tracks performance and service quality of public utilities.

While the CRC is a system pioneered by the Public Affairs Centre (PAC) in Bangalore, in Karachi it is being initiated on the initiative of the KWSB and CDGK and is a part of the Water and Sanitation Programme (WSP) which is actually a technical arm of the World Bank. The programme to address the lack of accountability in the KWSB was first initiated in 2005 when Niamatullah Khan was the city mayor and the need to reform the water and sanitation sector was identified. While the project went dormant off and on over the years, recently a push was made by the provincial government and the city government with the key theme being identification of the legal aspect of accountability.

The KWSB is a civic utility service which functions on an autonomous level. However, in the devolution system implemented in 2001, the administrative head became even more unclear when the KWSB was placed under the CDGK while structurally it remained under the provincial government which had a say in its internal issues. At present, the KWSB is the main source of water supply in this entire city. The other agencies like the Defence Housing Authority and the Clifton Cantonment Board buy water in bulk from the KWSB and undertake its distribution within the areas which fall under their jurisdiction.

What currently ails the water sector in Karachi is the dilapidated pipeline network which has many seepages and which in places crosses over with the sewerage lines. So it is more the quality of water which wreaks havoc with people’s lives rather than the quantity, which is sufficient ever since the reservoir at Hub was filled in the last rains.

Reports of unhygienic water being supplied to many portions of the city have regularly featured in the media and Lyari has been receiving contaminated water for a number of years. Resultantly the area has also recorded many deaths caused by waterborne diseases. In certain areas water has been noted to be so dirty that it appears almost black. The specific areas where contaminated water has been routine occurrence include the environs of Lyari like Daryabad, Nayabad and Khadda market where residential population goes in millions and where children have been the main victims.

The second factor plaguing Karachi’s water supply is the lucrative business of water tankers or ‘bowsers’ which thrives when water supply through laid-out pipelines is closed from the main hydrant.

This same water is sold from the main hydrant to those involved in the business of selling water at high rates through their privately owned tankers. Incidentally, majority of the water hydrants in the city are owned by the Rangers. One may rightly ask what business is it of the Rangers to get involved in the water supply business? So much so that the lands around the hydrants too are now occupied/owned by the Rangers and some of these are now thriving as their residential colonies.

Since a lack of management and corruption has inflicted the citizens with water shortage and contamination issues for as long as any Karachiite can remember, it is quite a breath of fresh air that the KWSB is looking to do some soul-searching and getting consumer feedback through the Citizen’s Report Card. When it is complete, the CRC will address almost all areas of management and distribution within the KWSB.

Consultative workshops are being conducted and eventually a private surveying firm will be hired to carry out the process, maintaining neutrality. Sufficient data will be collected randomly to assess service delivery and while the CRC will question the current status of the public service, it will also look into what policies the utility should and would eventually implement to maximise benefits for the consumers.