APROPOS the news item ‘Power outages, gridlock test Karachi’s patience after showers’ (Sept 3).

I was seven-years-old when Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah gave us Pakistan. Karachi was his birthplace and quite frankly, it was the envy of many during the British Raj — a clean city inhabited by educated people who built schools, colleges and hospitals.

After 1947, Karachi started to deteriorate.

Today I consider my Karachi no better than a slum. Sure, the city has posh areas but it is impossible to stay away from the trash and stench of the gutter.

After spending most of my life in Karachi, it was with a heavy heart that I decided to move to Lahore. After a brief visit to Karachi, I was getting ready to leave for Lahore again on Sept 2 when K-Electric decided to give me a farewell to remember.

The party started 24 hours earlier on Sept 1, when I had no electricity from 7.30pm to 10.30am the next day (when I was scheduled to leave).

I would just like to add that in July, Lahore receives more rain than Karachi does in a day.

Fida

Lahore

Published in Dawn, September 8th, 2019