KARACHI, July 10: Natha Khan Bridge is perhaps the only section of the city’s prime highway-like thoroughfare, Sharea Faisal, which has been a victim of constant neglect although it has been serving for long a huge population shuttling between the international airport and a vast territory of this metropolis.
A lack of proper and regular maintenance, as well as a strict check on unscrupulous elements, has turned the vital installation into a dangerous path for commuters and pedestrians alike. Once strong, smooth and architecturally attractive, the bridge now stands without a complete railing, smooth road and safe pavement. It had lost its colour years back and no official has since bothered to pay attention to the defaced structure.
About 100-foot portion of the concrete railings on both sides of the bridge has fallen down or been damaged by unscrupulous elements.
The road has also become bumpy as much needed carpeting has been planned several a times but put off for months, apparently to avoid traffic jams on this thoroughfare.
Recent heavy rains had caused considerable damage to certain portions of the bridge prompting the authorities concerned to fill up the wide cracks that had developed in its walls. However, the repair work was confined to the ‘heavily damaged’ portions.
Deliberate damage
The painful aspect of the affair is the disclosure by a group of local people that unscrupulous elements deliberately cause damage to the structure of the bridge. “This practice has been witnessed over the last few months,” said a youth among them, adding: “Some people were seen pulling down a portion of the concrete railings, apparently to extract iron bars and sell them to junk dealers.”
Another person suggested that not only thieves and addicts but also stooges of the contractor mafia also indulged in such activities. The damage would ultimately earn the mafia a fresh repair and renovation contract, he explained.
The bridge is also experiencing a rather natural decay of its foundations. Originally built over a storm-water drain parallel to which is a rail track, it was supposed to last longer but the drain has since become a sewage channel carrying all sorts of hazardous and toxic material, including industrial waste. The sewage is causing damage to its foundations and the local people now apprehend that the bridge might not complete its estimated life.
As far as the deliberate damage is concerned, similar things had been faced by the Quaidabad Bridge in the past and the authorities had to construct its railings afresh. Yet another bridge connecting the National Highway and Super Highway near the New Malir Housing Scheme sustained damage due to the ruthless driving and excavation by the reti-bajri mafia, which indulged in the illegal practice of lifting earth from the Malir River for sale to construction firms and contractors. Their trucks and tools had caused considerable damage to the pillars of the bridge.The railings of the Expressway’s portion between Baloch Colony and Korangi have suffered damage although the facility has been built just a couple of decades back. The authorities concerned are yet to pay attention to its repair.
Government apathy
The concerned residents of the localities around these bridges expressed their astonishment over the lack of interest on the part of the government in ensuring protection and proper maintenance of these highly sensitive installations. They said that damage to such facilities would not only create a major problem of mass movement but also put an extra burden on the exchequer unnecessarily.
They wondered why no elected representative or official took notice of the deliberate damage being caused to bridges and other installations despite the fact that they happened to be among thousands of people passing through the thoroughfares day and night daily.
