KARACHI: Two inches of rains yesterday [Aug 22] washed away all the worries of the Anti-Malaria Squads of the Karachi Municipal Corporation — at least for the time being.

Most breeding of mosquitoes in the City were washed [away] — and much of the mosquito-larvae and adult mosquitoes along with them.

The covered storm water drains — the worst breeding places — were cleared with the heavy draining of rain water. Many obstructions responsible for the halting flow were also flushed.

The open storm water drains that had silted and had stagnated at places were also flushed thoroughly by yesterday’s rains.

The Lyari River that had come down to a trickle and had stagnant water in its many arms and pits was in spate yesterday and all mosquitoes’ nurseries were washed down to the sea.

The many pools and puddles and lakes in the City — the biggest headache for the mosquito fighters — were cleaned of mosquito-breeding as the accumulated rain water was stagnant no more.

Temporarily relieved, the problems of the Anti-Malaria Squads of the Health Department arise again when the pools and puddles and lakes begin to stagnate all over again; and the storm water drains, both covered and open, return to a halting flow and silted by the flood. — Correspondent

[Meanwhile, as reported by another correspondent,] fertiliser production, which in 1964-65 was 233,000 tons — 33 per cent below the rated capacity — is expected to rise to 1.59 million tons by 1970 under an ambitious programme to achieve food self sufficiency.

The programme envisages the expansion of the existing four units with a combined annual capacity of 347,000 tons and the commissioning of new units whose production is estimated at a conservative 70 per cent capacity.

Sanction has already been given to five private parties for setting up fertiliser units with a combined rated capacity of 1.47 million tons. Besides, three more units are to be installed at Ghorasal, Chittagong and Daudkhel in the public section.

Published in Dawn, August 23rd, 2017