KARACHI, Sep 14: The residents of Sindhi Para, Shanti Nagar, Union Council 7, Gulshan Town, have not received a single drop of water for the last three weeks as two pumping machines have been stolen by some miscreants.

The water supply system of Sindhi Para, along with the pumping machines and the pump house, the property of the Shanti Nagar Welfare Association, was handed over to the Karachi Water & Sewerage Board just two months back, with a payment of over Rs0.5 million.

The KW&SB was approached by the residents of this locality through their welfare association and the UC Nazim to take over the water supply system from the Sindh Public Health Engineering Department. As a result, the KW&SB set up its camp at Sindhi Para to collect fee and issued sanction orders for regular water supply.

The residents told PPI that they were informed by the KW&SB authorities and the UC Nazim that under the new arrangements they would receive water for two hours daily. However, water supply continued on alternate days. About three weeks back, the supply stopped and on inquiry the residents learnt that some miscreants living in other localities of the UC had stolen two motor pumps with the help of the valve-man appointed by the UC Nazim and paid by the residents.

The matter was reported to the KW&SB authorities who asked the UC Nazim to recover the machines, as he knows the culprits. When the Sindhi Para residents contacted the UC Nazim, he told that the pumping motors had developed a fault and were lying somewhere. He flatly refused to get them repaired saying he had no funds and it was the responsibility of the water board to maintain it.

The residents said that in the meantime one of the motor pumps had been reinstalled to release water to other localities. They alleged that the persons involved in stealing the motor pumps were working under the patronage of certain councillors of other localities.

For the last three weeks the residents of Sindhi Para have had to buy water from the water tankers who are charging exorbitant rates. They have appealed to the KW&SB authorities to take action against the persons involved and restore water supply to Sindhi Para as they are now consumers of the board after the payment of a huge amount, and in future also they will have to pay water charges to the KW&SB.—PPI