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KARACHI, Nov 23: The Karachi City Government has chalked out a plan to hold various symposiums and workshops to discuss and find out possible solutions to various problems faced by the Karachiites.
A symposium on “water supply and sewerage disposal — problems and possible solutions” is being organized on December 1 at the Gallery Sadequain.
The symposium, to be held under the chairmanship of City Nazim, Naimatullah Khan, will be addressed, among others, by former City Mayor Abdul Sattar Afghani, former KMC administrator Fahimuzzaman Khan and ex-MD KWSB Zakir Ali Khan.
The Community Development Department of the City Government is implementing a coordinated programme to address the basic problems of Karachi, including construction of roads, sanitation and cleanliness, elimination of beggary, transport and issues which have a direct bearing on the people and to find out ways and means for their positive solution by benefiting from the experiences of concerned experts.
The topic of the seminar has been chosen in view of its importance for Karachi — a city which has a population of more than 10 million people and is spread over an area of 1000 square kilometres. They lacks water resources and water is brought here from a source about 100 km away. There is a daily shortfall of about 112 mgd. About 482 mgd water is supplied to Karachi as against its approximate demand of 594 mgd.
Similarly about 60 per cent of water supplied to Karachi turns over as sewerage, both as domestic and non-domestic, including toxic industrial waste water.
Whereas an optimum design capacity of the three sewage treatment plants in the city is 52 per cent of sewerage generated in the city.
TREE-PLANTATION: The Karachi City government during its ongoing tree-plantation programme has allocated separate space for coconut trees in parks and hundreds of them have already been planted in different parks of Karachi, whereas a complete programme has been finalised to achieve the target of planting 800,000 saplings in one year.
According to a press release, about 100 coconut trees have been planted in Gulshan-i-Jinnah, 50 in Frere Hall and in Amir Khusro Park.
The parks department of city government has pledged to plant more than 800,000 trees by June 31 with the help of NGOs, different departments and residents of Karachi.
One of very important aim of this programme is to impart tree-loving culture in Karachi.
During the ongoing programme, A number of departments and individuals are also contributing in it as Pakistan Steel has already planted 18,000 trees out of 25,000 promised by them.
Similarly, Karachi University and six cantonment boards have announced to plant 25,000 and 35,000 trees.
Apart from this, a number of individuals, including Mohammad H. Zoomkawala, have promised to plant 20,000 trees.
The City Government will provide more and more saplings to towns whereas all the 18 towns have been directed to establish at leaste one nursery of their own.
Malir and Korangi Towns have already been provided 1,000 saplings each.—APP/PPI
