KARACHI: The Sindh High Court on Thursday directed the NED University of Engineering and Technology to conduct the evaluation of the drainage infrastructure in the jurisdictions of the Cantonment Board Clifton (CBC) and Defence Housing Authority (DHA).

A two-judge SHC bench headed by Justice Irfan Saadat Khan also asked the university to file the evaluation report within one month.

The counsel for petitioners moved an application requesting the bench to appoint a qualified sanitation engineer to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of drainage system of the CBC and DHA.

They also sought directives for the respondents — the CBC, DHA, National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) — to provide detailed maps of the existing drainage infrastructure as well as all requisite support for this purpose.

A group of residents moves SHC for formation of a body to oversee sanitation projects in CBC limits

Allowing the application, the bench said, “The NED [University] is appointed to conduct the evaluation of the drainage infrastructure and furnish their report within one month time from the date of their appointment. Fee of NED would be paid exclusively by the petitioners and would be decided by them with NED.”

The NDMA filed comments and a copy was provided to the counsel for petitioners while an assistant advocate general-Sindh sought time to file a reply on behalf of the PPDMA.

The matter was adjourned for the second week of December.

Earlier, the bench had issued notices to the NDMA and PDMA about flooding during last year’s rains after the petitioners included the two organisations in the list of respondents.

Initially, around 60 residents of Clifton and DHA had filed a petition before the SHC last year and sought formation of a committee to supervise sanitation projects and conducting a forensic audit of the CBC and DHA accounts after the auditor general’s report found irregularities.

Later, the petitioners’ counsel filed an application seeking contempt proceedings against all four respondents stating that they had wilfully violated the May 24 order in which the SHC had directed them to file complete details about the assignment of work regarding storm-water drainage in the subject area along with the names of experts and consultants within 10 days, but the lawyers had argued that they were unable to comply with the order.

In September last year, the bench had expressed surprise over cancelation of tenders for cleaning of storm-water drains by the CBC before monsoon season and issuing the same after the season ended and observed as to how the issuance of the tender notices could be justified at the end of monsoon season.

The bench had said that the petitioners’ counsel also produced audit reports of the Auditor General of Pakistan in respect of defence services, which showed serious irregularities and lack of transparency in different bidding processes.

The petitioners had argued that the authorities concerned had completely failed to handle the situation during and after the torrential rains and perform their statutory duties.

They submitted that the CBC had issued a tender notice for de-silting of drains in April last year, but it rejected the lowest bid without citing any reason for the cancellation and issued another tender for Sept 15, 2020 i.e. after the end of the monsoon season.

Published in Dawn, November 12th, 2021