KARACHI: In a bid to stop theft, the governing body of the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board (KWSB) has decided to install 421 water meters at all of the utility’s 156 pumping stations.

The KWSB will also take necessary measures to recycle sewage in consultation with experts and members of its board.

These decisions were taken in the meeting of the board’s governing body chaired by Local Govern­ment Minister Saeed Ghani on Monday.

Minister Ghani said that all mea­sures were being taken to ensure availability of water to citizens.

He said that a committee had been formed in order to make subsoil water and the hydrant system more effective.

He also stressed the need for holding the meeting of the KWSB’s governing body on a quarterly basis to immediately solve the administrative and technical issues.

The governing board of the water utility forms a body to regularise illegal water connections

The minister also appreciated the efforts being made by KWSB managing director Khalid Shaikh, who he said despite water shortage had been striving for “fair distribution” of water by keeping an eye on water theft.

The board also appealed to the people not to use subsoil water for drinking purposes and in domestic use as it could only be utilised for industrial use.

Karachi Mayor Wasim Akhtar, who was also present at the board meeting, said that service delivery was our foremost duty and assured full cooperation to the KWSB for improving water supply.

He also assured the board of his full cooperation in finding solutions of problems being faced by the board, including improvement in its recovery to provide improved facilities to the people of Karachi.

KWSB chief Shaikh informed the meeting that his staff was busy day and night for ensuring water supply to the people, checking water theft by demolishing illegal hydrants and encroachments on the KWSB land and its installations.

In order to keep an eye on water theft, he said, 421 water meters were being installed at 156 pumping stations located inside and outside the city to mitigate complaints of the people about shortage of water supply and drainage of sewage.

He also said that all resources were being utilised to ensure water availability to tail-enders and those living on higher ground.

The meeting decided to formulate a strategy to improve recovery of water taxes and regularise illegal water connections.

The meeting also set up a works committee and another committee to consider and formulate rules and regulations for the uses of subsoil water.

Also, the board constituted a three-member committee to consider proposals for reforming and improving the tax recovery system.

Published in Dawn, December 18th, 2018