HYDERABAD: Justice Moham­mad Iqbal Kalhoro, acting in his capacity as the one-man judicial commission appointed by the Supreme Court to look into supply of contaminated water to consumers in Sindh, has directed Water and Sanitation Agency (Wasa) managing director Masood Jumani to come prepared on June 3 and apprise him as to when his institution will execute the proposal — submitted to the commission by an irrigation officer — regarding treatment of effluent that falls into the Phulelli Canal.

He issued the directive during the commission’s proceedings held in the Sindh High Court Karachi on Saturday.

He directed Dr Ghulam Murtaza, a member of the task force set up by the apex court, to collect water samples for analysing its quality. Such samples should be collected from hospitals, schools, public spaces etc and a report [about results of their tests] be submitted to the commission within a month so that the quality of water being provided to people from the river, canals, reverse osmosis plants, water supply schemes etc could be analysed, Dr Murtaza was told.

Task force chairman Mustafa Jamal Syed, who is the irrigation secretary, stated that the proposal submitted by irrigation department’s executive engineer Aijaz Ahmed Qureshi, in respect of effluent treatment at the Darya Khan pumping station, was found feasible. He said the plan could be executed within 20 weeks. However, he mentioned that Wasa had to provide funds for the purpose.

Masood Jumani sought time to examine the plan and submit a report to the commission.

Justice Kalhoro had earlier directed that till the functioning of a treatment plant being installed under federal funding, a short-term plan be put in place to avoid contamination of Phulelli Canal that supplies water to Badin and Tando Mohammad Khan districts.

Aijaz Qureshi eventually presented the plan on May 6.

Chief Secretary Rizwan Memon during the commission’s visit to the canal had stated that directives of the apex court regarding implementation of decisions had been complied with and only requisite notifications were to be issued. He sought three days’ time to file compliance report along with the requisite notifications.

Sukkur Electric Supply Company (Sepco) chief executive officer Abdul Latif Anjum appeared before the commission, which had earlier issued bailable warrants against him for ignoring a call-up notice. He stated that all 109 electric connections of water supply and drainage schemes had been energised which were pending in Sepco.

In view of his submitted report, the commission ordered that sessions judges in Sindh, barring Karachi, would depute judicial officers to pay visits along with officers concerned to verify whether all water supply and drainage schemes in their jurisdictions are functioning. Such reports would be submitted to the commission within three weeks.

Karachi Water and Sewerage Board managing director and his deputy were not able to satisfy the commission as to why the TP-I and TP-III were not made functional in line with the apex court’s March 16 order. They stated that quantity of chlorinated water was enhanced from 250MGD to 330MGD.

They admitted that chlorinated water was mixed with the remaining water before onward supply. The commission directed the MD to submit a report regarding mode of water collection from water hydrants and explain as to why recommendation of the commission for putting in place a new water distribution system and revamping of the old one was not complied with.

The health secretary informed the commission that incinerators were not installed in hospital but such process was under way and would be finalised soon. About private hospitals and laboratories, he assured the commission that he would take steps to ensure enforcement of the Hospital Waste Manage­ment Rules 2014. He was directed to form a committee mandated to inspect all such private facilities periodically and submit a report to the commission.

Published in Dawn, May 21st, 2017