September 09, 2008	Tuesday	Ramazan 8, 1429

KARACHI, Sept 8: A large number of illegal hydrants operating in different parts of the city continue to fetch unhygienic well water and after mixing in it the tap water drawn unlawfully from KWSB pipelines, sell it to citizens at exorbitantly high rates.

The water utility had taken action, though half-heartedly, against some of the operators of such illegal hydrants in the recent past. However, a considerable number of illegal hydrants are still doing a roaring business, reportedly in connivance with the KWSB officials concerned.

Asked if the quality of water being supplied by such “water traders” is fit for human consumption, a senior official of the KWSB said: “How can one expect that the water being supplied by the illegal hydrants, particularly those functioning along the banks of Lyari and Malir rivers, is clean and safe?”

In reply to another question about the official hydrants’ capacity to meet the requirement of the water-deficit areas of the city, he said that as a matter of fact not only the 11 per cent localities without water pipelines but almost all katchi abadis depended on the tanker service. The katchi abadis constitute more than 52 per cent of the city’s planned area.

He pointed out that the city district government’s socio-economic survey conducted before the Karachi Strategic Development Plan (KSDP) suggested that piped water facility was available to about 89 per cent of the city’s population.

Elaborating, he said that since domestic water consumption accounted for 60 per cent of the total water requirement in the city, the remaining domestic consumers and industrial units had to depend on the tanker service.

Quoting from the survey report, he said that the localities solely depending on tanker service included the KDA Scheme-33, several blocks of Gulistan-i-Jauhar and many katchi abadis.

On the other hand, he added, quite a large number of commercial and industrial consumers in Landhi, Korangi, Federal B’ Area and Site industrial zones had been meeting their water requirement through the private hydrants’ tanker service.

Regarding a rough estimate of the volume of water being stolen from the KWSB pipelines by the illegal hydrants, the official said that although the KWSB had never undertaken an assessment, the volume could be several million gallons per day.

“The people residing in and around these illegal hydrants receive water with low pressure and also complain of getting contaminated water,” he said. Such complaints usually came Landhi, Korangi, Mauripur, Shershah, etc where a bigger number of private hydrants were functioning as against other parts of the city.