Strike a bargain!

They roam the alleys and lanes foraging for food in garbage heaps and dustbins. One sees them almost everywhere in the sprawling metropolis, which seems to be their natural habitat.

Recently, a friend who was returning home from work was greeted by one as he got down from his car but fortunately, the canine was not in a snapping mood, or I would be visiting him in hospital right now for severe dog bite.

In my neighbourhood recently an old beggar woman was also attacked by a stray dog, but some eyewitnesses claim that the female canine was protecting her litter of puppies and thought the old woman was attacking them with her walking stick.

The menace of stray dogs is spreading in the city and if it continues to go unchecked, we may be hearing of a few more cases in the near future.

They have a habit of chasing cars and scaring the life out of people, especially children, when they roam in packs and bark their heads off.

Sometimes one feels pity for the poor creatures also as they are beaten and stoned by people and at times roam the streets with open festering wounds with no one to attend to them.

There are no proper kennels or shelters for these canines and they are usually caught by the municipal staff and put to sleep.

It seems strange but I am told that the municipal authorities have a novel concept of getting rid of these animals. Poison is stuffed into raw meat or dog biscuits and spread in the by-lanes and alleys where the unsuspecting canine gobbles it up and gets carried away, though there have been various complaints by Karachians that this way their domestic pets are exposed to danger.

The city government made a contract with a Chinese company for collection of garbage in the metropolis.

Perhaps it would not be a bad idea if a similar contract is given to another company to clear the city of stray dogs.—Syed Ali Anwer

Warding off the evil eye

For the past few weeks I have noticed something strange about many rickshaws and some pick-ups. They have a small shoe or a sandal or a slipper hanging at the back. By small shoe I mean one belonging to a tiny tot or a child. Somehow I was under the impression that the rickshaw or pick-up driver was childless and it was supposed to be a good luck charm to fill his home with the laughter and cries of a baby.

Last week I struck up a conversation with a Pakhtun rickshaw driver and asked him why a lot of rickshaws these days have a child’s shoe hanging from the back. I was taken aback with what he had to say. He told me: “Buri nazar se bachne ke liye (to ward off the evil eye)”.

He emphasised that the shoe would always be that of a child, never of an adult. He also showed me that ‘MashaAllah’ had been written on the same rickshaw. We discussed who else could be a bigger protector than the Almighty Himself. Then we joked about how superstitious some people could be.

The irony is rickshaw drivers are among some of the most accident-prone drivers in Karachi with their reckless speeding and driving. And so are mini-bus drivers and motorcyclists.

Just to make sure I asked another rickshaw driver, this time a young urban soul, regarding the shoes and sandals. He started smiling sarcastically. When I asked him what he found to be so funny, he replied: Hanging shoes to ward off evil!

The auto-rickshaw shoes reminded me of the Turks who actually hang a blue stone with a black stone in the centre in the shape of an eye on doors and walls to ward off the evil eye. An eye for an eye.—Mohsin Maqbool Elahi

The wow factor

A colleague who recently met an accident narrated the following ordeal to me.

Her car was going through the Defence area when another car hit it. The mistake was entirely the other driver’s. As both the cars came to a halt and the two drivers stepped outside for a showdown, my colleague braced herself for a long and futile blame game.

Much to her surprise the other driver, who happened to be a young man in his early twenties, readily admitted his mistake. He apologized immediately, offered to pay for the damage caused to my colleague’s car, waited till her husband arrived to settle matters and then handed them a copy of his identity card so that they could get in touch with him.

There are many accidents everyday, and the culprits either speed away or insist that they are innocent. The result is a roadside show for all and sundry to enjoy. The guilty party gets off scot-free, while the wronged one ends up paying for his or her own damages.

Therefore, in this day and age, isolated incidents such as these are definitely a breath of fresh air. They give one the hope that all is not lost when civic sense is concerned. There are apparently some Karachians out there who are ready to admit their mistakes instead of insisting on it, and that’s definitely a very encouraging sign.—Hafsa Ahsan

A blind eye to beggars

In Defence the authorities have now become merciless when it comes to parking violations in the commercial areas, but still there is a place in the oldest commercial area of Phase II where no one from the police or area vigilance teams would dare do anything.

The whole footpath on the Sailor Street as well as the corner near a tandoor/restaurant is now full of beggars, especially in the evenings. It has become a common place for beggars to collect and eat. No one would dare remove them now, as they seem to have permanently glued their women on one side of the street. If any of the neighbours protest, they are made to suffer.

Recently, two women beggars staged a fight in the middle of the road, tearing each other’s clothes off. But the police mobile went into action and arrested the staff of a nearby fast-food restaurant for disturbing the peace, accusing them of trying to harass the beggars.

So no one would dare say or do anything about this menace. The women beggars have even removed a manhole cover where they, along with their children, openly relieve themselves. Meanwhile, their kids throw all kinds of garbage at any car that tries to park in their way.

At first glance the reason why these people have flocked to this place seems to be the lure of cheap food. But the actual fact is that this has devalued the property prices and that maybe of interest to the estate dealers. There seems to be certain key players in this game who provide protective cover to the huge flock of beggars, while ordinary people and businesses in the area suffer.—Nusrat Rizvi

Compiled by Syed Hassan Ali

karachian@dawn.com

Air pollution

Sir,
After quite a long time, we have found a city nazim who is hard-working. We are thankful to him for his efforts for Karachi.

I would like to draw the nazim’s attention towards the issue of air pollution. Sir, sorting out the problem of air pollution – which has reached deadly levels – should be our first priority.

I would like to advise you to take immediate action and ban old model buses, wagons, trucks, rickshaws and private vehicles which contribute to air pollution.

Also, please instruct your inspectors to check all factories which are violating environment laws and pass a resolution so that from now on, the new factories are set up in the suburbs.

Please also send a request to the education ministry to include the topic of air pollution in the syllabus.

SOHAIL IBRAHIM

Karachi

Fancy plates

Sir,

I must express my utter disgust at the way members belonging to the leading political party are openly flouting the law of the land, particularly relating to road traffic.

Latest SUVs with personal number plates, both at the front and the back, are seen negotiating the roads.

Of course, how dare the traffic police flag them down? For instance, in the DHA a well-known gentleman has five such vehicles parked outside his residence.

DHA RESIDENT

Karachi

Water problem

Sir,

We, the people of Khurramabad, Sector 37F/J, Landhi No 2, which is not a rural area and was recognized by the KDA, have submitted all the dues to the KWSB for water connection.

We were getting water for the last six or seven years, but since the last one year we are not getting any water. Now we are purchasing water from water tankers, which is very costly for us and also causes such diseases as dehydration and skin problems, especially in children.

We request you to please convey our problem to the persons/authority concerned of the CDGK and KWSB and resolve our issue. Early action in this regard will be highly appreciated.

RESIDENTS

Khurramabad, Landhi

Storm-water drains

Sir,

The DHA has badly botched up the work of laying storm drains. The drains have been dug right in the centre of the roads and covered clumsily with ill-fitting concrete slabs having holes, apparently to facilitate water entering the drains.

But the roads on either side were left as they were and are now in a completely dilapidated condition.

Resultantly, if one was to bring his vehicle on the road he will be between the devil and the deep sea; if one were to drive the vehicle in the centre, because of the abrasive slabs and their amateurish laying the whole vehicle shakes, jolts and rattles like a rickety railway carriage.

If you take the vehicle to one side, the experience is little better with the jagged road.

If better sense had prevailed with the DHA, the drains should have been dug on the sides (as is the universal practice) and some attempt should have been made to at least make the roads usable.

Could someone in authority in the DHA please clarify as to whose bright idea was to do the work in the manner it has been done?

SARDAR IKRAMULLAH

DHA

Leasing out land

Sir,

The report ‘KPT leases out land at throwaway price’, (Dawn, Sept 6, 2008) is not something astonishing. One may recall that about two years ago, the KPT leased out the land on which the Pakistan Central Cotton Committee (PCCC) stood for over 50 years on M.T. Khan Road. This was leased out for the relocation of the US consulate for reasons of their security.

The said building gained prominence due to the fact that pioneering scientists selected this site as the most suitable for fibre testing on technical grounds.

Interestingly, the foundation stone of the building was laid by the late Khawaja Nazimuddin, the then governor-general of Pakistan, and the formal inauguration was done by another national hero, the late Chaudhry Mohammad Ali, the then prime minister of Pakistan.

But the KPT did not give this any consideration. Other options could have been explored to save the PCCC headquarters and the well-equipped testing laboratories and relocate the US consulate.

It is time that we, as a civilized nation, learn to respect and preserve our institutions and keep the national interest above personal greed and whims.

M. SHAFIQUE AHMED

Gulistan-i-Jauhar

city@dawn.com