KARACHI, March 4: The city on Tuesday once again started getting water from the Hub source after a gap of about four months.

The supply from Hub Dam was suspended on Oct 16, 2002 when water in the dam’s reservoir touched the dead storage level of 276 RL (Reservoir Level).

Following recent rains, the level rose by 5.6 feet, touching 281.6 RL from the sea level. Satisfied over the situation, the city authorities resumed water supply to both the beneficiaries, Karachi and Lasbela, from Tuesday.

The City Nazim, Naimatullah Khan visited the dam on Tuesday for an assessment. Later, the executive district officer (EDO) of Water and Sanitation Department, Brig (r) Sardar Javaid Ashraf, briefed him about the situation.

He said that under a formula devised at a meeting held on Monday under the chairmanship of the additional secretary, Planning and Development, Sindh, Karachi and Lasbela would be supplied 15 million gallons of water on turn-by-turn basis. The formula, he explained, provided for water supply to Karachi for three consecutive days and Lasbela for two consecutive days.

The DO (Technical Services), Suleman Chandio, told the Nazim that with the restoration of supply from the dam, all out efforts would be made to reduce the gap in supply to the localities hooked to the Hub source from present five days to four days.

He said that the localities which would benefit from the Hub source supplies included the sprawling townships of Orangi, Baldia, North Karachi and Shershah.

If Karachi and Lasbela continued to draw 15mgd water from the dam, the reservoir could easily feed both the beneficiaries for the next two-and-a-half months.

Briefing about the present level in the reservoir, Wapda’s resident engineer at Hub, Inamullah Khan, told the Nazim that it had jumped from 276 RL to 281.6 RL in the wake of recent rains. The dam’s catchment area is spread over 3,410 square miles up to Kirthar Range whereas the lake is spread over an area of 38 square miles.

Earlier, the City Nazim visited the site of the water treatment plant being built near the dam. The plant would provide purified water to the residents of the localities hooked to the Hub source.

Brig Ashraf told the Nazim that work on the plant was initiated in April 2002 and scheduled to be completed in January 2005.

The plant having a capacity of 100 mgd, on its completion would filter 30mgd water from to be drawn from Hub source and 80mgd from K-III project.

Water supply to Karachi from Hub source was first stopped in December 1999 because its catchment area had remained dry during the previous four consecutive rainless monsoon seasons.

However, the supply was restored in the third week of August 2001 following rains in its catchment area during the monsoon of 2000. The authorities intermittently suspended the supply due to low level in the reservoir and finally announced a closure on Oct 16 last year. Since then, all the areas hooked to the Hub source were being supplied water from Indus source. Three outlets — pumping stations North-East Karachi (K-2), Ajmair Nagri and Board office pumping stations — were set up for the purpose and quota of the Indus source beneficiaries was cut to conserve water.