KARACHI, Oct 31: At least six localities of the city are without water for the last one week, causing hardships and mental agonies to residents of the affected areas during Ramazan.

The hard-hit localities include hundreds of apartments in Gulshan-i-Iqbal's blocks 13-D/3, 13-D/1, North Nazimabad's Block- C, Lyari's D.D. Chaudhry Road, Clifton's Block-2, Orangi Town's UC-9 and parts of Baldia Town.

People residing in Gulshan-i-Iqbal's Noman Complex, housing at least 300 apartments, complained that they had not got a single drop of water for the last one week. They said that the pipeline supplying water to their apartment building had been dry since then reportedly owing to a burst.

"One can imagine the hardships being faced by the residents of over 300 apartments in the absence of water during Ramazan," remarked a resident of Noman Complex.

Similar complaints have been received from the residents of Gulshan-i-Iqbal's Civic View Apartments who are without water since first of Ramazan.

Residents of North Nazimabad's Block-C complained that over 60 houses of the locality starting from House No A-584, situated near Technical Training Centre, had been without water for the last one week. They said that the KWSB officials concerned had not yet bothered to restore their supply despite that a number of complaints had been lodged with them.

"Previously, we were being supplied contaminated water. Although the fault was removed a week back, we have not been supplied with a single drop of water since then," deplored an elderly person of the locality.

Complaints of persisting water shortage have also been received from Clifton's Block-2.

Attributing the cause of lingering water issue to illegal connections given to some influential people and commercial concerns from main supply by KWSB officials, area residents demanded the city nazim and KWSB managing-director to immediately launch a campaign against illegal connections to bring an end to the persisting water shortage problem of Clifton's Block-2.

People residing on either side of Lyari's D.D. Chaudhry Road, Bismillah Colony and in the vicinity of Lyari Telephone Exchange complained that although their water shortage problem has been aggravating since July 31, the KWSB officials seem least interested in resolving the issue even during Ramazan.

According to the residents of Orangi's UC-9 and parts of Baldia Town, they have been experiencing acute water shortage for the last five days mainly owing to low pressure of water supply.

Manghopir station: The new Manghopir pumping station will start functioning from January 2005, after which the supply of 100-mgd water will start from the Hub source as against 90-mgd being supplied at the present to Baldia, Orangi and SITE towns, adds APP.

This was stated by the Managing Director, Karachi Water and Sewerage Board, Brig Iftekhar Haider, while inspecting the experimental operation of the new pumping station on Sunday. He pushed the buttons to start the machines for testing purpose.