ISLAMABAD, May 25: The Consumer Rights Commission of Pakistan (CRCP) has urged the Sindh government to take measures to contain the death toll and spread of fatal diseases being caused by the supply of contaminated drinking water in areas of lower Sindh, particularly Hyderabad.

The CRCP expressed concerns over, what it termed, the gross neglect of duties by the authorities and supply of toxic water, which had caused more than 10 deaths. The commission secretary-general, Mian Abrar Hafeez, said this calamity was the result of negligence by the officials of Irrigation Department, Hyderabad Development Authority, Water and Sanitation Authority and the local government.

He demanded stern action against those responsible, and said provision of clean drinking water to citizens should be top priority in the development agenda of the government.

Mr Hafeez said experts had forecast likelihood of toxicity in the water of Manchar Lake, which was receiving a huge quantity of contaminated water through Right Outfall Drain. However, the departments concerned did not pay much attention to them and let the residents of the area consume toxic water, he added.

He said the issue of access to clean water was related to broader discourse of consumer protection, which had hitherto remained a neglected area in Pakistan. In the absence of Safe Drinking Water Act, the consumers did not have an adequate forum where they could register their complaints about provision of contaminated water by the civic agencies, he added.

Mr Hafeez urged the government to give top priority to the issue of safe drinking water and ensure the promulgation of laws in this regard as early as possible.