KARACHI: More than 50 per cent of the iron dust bins in the City are rusted beyond repairs and have turned useless [May 26].

This is revealed by a survey made by the Health Department to find out how many dust bins in the City were broken and needed replacement.

Health Inspectors in all the four districts who checked and counted the dust bins in their areas, were also asked to suggest sites for more dust bins. Of the 2,000-odd dust bins in the City, more than 1,000 were found in deplorable condition. Most of them were rusted and broken and riddled with holes.

The survey revealed that the number of rusted dust bins have increased over the last two months, mainly due to the rains.

The Health Department has a provision for 500 new iron dust bins during the current financial year; but after making about 100 of them the contractor quit.

A new contractor has been selected to finish the job before the fiscal year is out.

And the Health Department now has the problem of how to replace 1,000 dust bins and put more dust bins besides, with only 400 dust bins to come.

[Meanwhile, as reported by our correspondent in Quetta,] a master plan was drawn up to solve the problem of water shortage in Quetta town at a high-level meeting held here yesterday [May 25].

The project involving an expenditure of over Rs 4 crore envisages construction of 155 foot high masonry dam with 8,000 acres feet water storage capacity.

On completion, Mangi dam will daily supply about 60 lakh gallons of water to Quetta town.

The dam to be constructed about 60 miles off Quetta is expected to be completed by June 1972.

Published in Dawn, May 27th, 2017