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KARACHI, July 4: The Pakistan Rangers, Sindh, who are manning nine hydrants of the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board, have again deferred the decision to hand over their control to the KWSB reportedly for the next 10 days because of the rain situation in the city, it was reliably learnt on Wednesday.
The handover was initially planned for June 18. However, a meeting chaired by City Nazim Syed Mustafa Kamal on the same day decided to postpone it till July 1.
The meeting, attended among others by DCO Javed Hanif, Brig Taqdees Ahmed of the Rangers and the KWSB Managing-Director Ghulam Arif, decided that the hydrants would be jointly run by the KWSB staff and Rangers till July 1.
However, the handover could not be materialised till July 4 reportedly because of the post-rain situation and the warning of the Met Office about more rains.
Sources in the KWSB said that the Rangers, in the meantime, might also gain some time to recover their dues outstanding against tanker operators.
The KWSB staff, deputed at the nine hydrants, are reportedly learning the process to run the hydrants and tanker service from the Rangers personnel, who have been operating the hydrants since 1999 when the worst water crisis had hit the city in the wake of the drying up of the Hub dam.
Hub Canal
Water supply to the city from the Hub dam source, suspended since Sunday when the canal developed four breaches, could not be restored even after four days owing to the delay caused in filling the breaches.
The city gets 100 million gallons of water per day from the Hub dam source which is supplied to the sprawling townships of Orangi, Baldia, Site, Surjani, Manghopir, Shershah and parts of North Karachi.
Although the KWSB had made alternative arrangements for supplying water to the localities hooked to the Hub dam source by diverting water supply from Indus through Ajmair Nagri pumping station, the localities whose water is being shared are facing water shortage.
However, the KWSB sources were optimistic that water supply to the city will be restored by Thursday after filling the breaches developed in the Hub Canal.
