IF the thousands of illegally constructed buildings, and uncompleted buildings, which litter every area of Karachi, do not just collapse, killing and maiming those either living in them or visiting, there are other hazards, such as fire, which will do the job.
Under the law, an annual/ periodical inspection of the electrical installation and equipment of private sector consumers is to be undertaken on a regular basis by the technical inspecting staff of the electric inspectorate of the city. However, for over two and a half years all inspections needed to be carried out have been ‘frozen’ ostensibly for the purpose of streamlining the procedure.
Last month, December 2005, Sindh’s Chief Secretary Fazlur Rahman, alarmed by what he could see and by reports he had received from various sources, ordered the electric inspectorate to unfreeze itself and carry out an inspection of the rickety, uncompleted high-rise that stands on the corner of the Teen Talwar, known as Gulf Towers (illegally connected to two other buildings, Cliff Towers and Metro Shopping Mall, the latter housing a university) — the ground floor of which has been allowed to be converted into a vast gaudy untidy shopping mall which attracts thousands of shoppers every day. The upper floors are all unfinished and unoccupied. The construction was inspected and a report presented to the chief secretary.
The findings, dated December 1 2005, of the inspecting technical staff are hair-raising. The preamble to this report, a public document, reads :
“Inspection of the Electrical Installation and Equipment of M/s Gulf Shopping Mall, Clifton, Karachi, carried [out] 1st December 2005 by the Technical Inspecting Staff of the Electric Inspectorate, Karachi, under Rule -5(1) of the Electricity Rules-1937.
“At present the Annual/Periodical Inspection of Electrical Installation & Equipment of the private sector consumers are frozen by the department since last two and a half years for streamlining of the procedure of annual/periodical inspections in private sector, but under the particular directives of the worthy Chief Secretary, Sindh, inspection of the Electrical Installation & Equipment of the Gulf Shopping Mall, Clifton, Karachi, was carried out by the team of technical inspecting staff of Electric Inspectorate, Karachi. The findings of the team with regard to deficiencies and infringements of the provisions of prevailing electricity laws are as under.”
The report tells us that the Karachi Electric Supply Corporation has established in the basement of this horrific construction a sub-station to cater to the needs of the consumers. As it is never kept locked, it can be accessed by anyone for any purpose. Oil from the transformers was found to be leaking — a high fire hazard, the cables in the sub-station were improperly laid. There are four LT distribution circuits to carry the current but there are no proper linked switches with the correct size of fuse wires to match the load. Thus in the event of an emergency (overload or short circuit) they cannot be separated from the supply system and fire will break out. The trenches containing these four distribution circuits were found to be filled with sewerage water and garbage, making the danger even more alarming. The consumers and licencees (the KESC) are not bothered and obviously could not care less for the lives of those who visit to shop and for the lives and properties of those to whom they have rented out shops and stalls.
Electric supply to the consumers is provided directly at four points by the use of metal boxes through bunches of supply lines but there are no adequate cutouts. Should there be any overloading or short-circuiting, fire will immediately break out.
Up on the ground floor, in the corridors of the shopping mall, all wiring was found to be either of a ‘loose gauge’ (inadequate) or of a temporary nature and the wiring joints were not taped in a fitting manner — yet another fire hazard. PVC pipes carrying electric wiring were found to be hanging loose — they could easily be dislodged and fall on the people below.
In the shops and stalls, the electric wiring lies open, dangling from the ceilings. Most shopkeepers use standby generators with open and ‘loose gauge’ cables and do not use changeover switches. They have also illegally extended their electricity load without obtaining any additional sanction from the KESC, and they mostly have temporary cables drawing electricity from their meters.
There is no earthing system at all for the electricity used for signboards, air conditioners and generators. Not one smoke/fire detector was found in any of the shops, and whatever or whoever it be that manages this shopping jungle has not bothered to hire qualified electricians, supervisors, or wiremen (as mandated by law) to maintain the wiring system and the electric installations and equipment on the premises.
There are no fire extinguishers, no fire water tanks, no pressure pumps, no emergency exit signs, and no fire plugs on the adjoining kerbs.
To quote directly from the report : “Overall condition of the Plaza is very deteriorated and dangerous which may cause heavy loss [of] human lives and property. As immediate steps, the management of the shopping mall is required to get [these] deficiencies rectified within a month [not done] under intimation to the Electric Inspector, Karachi, through government licensed electrical contractor of the Karachi region. The KESC is also required to get the related deficiencies rectified through [its] own staff as early as possible [not yet done] under intimation to the Electric Inspector, Karachi.
Frightening — “Apart from the above said plaza, some [should be ‘many’] other multistoried buildings and industries are also running with deteriorated/dangerous condition of wiring in this international city which may cause electric hazards resulting in loss of human lives and property.”
More frightening — “Keeping in view the position of the suspension of the process of annual/periodical inspections, the Electric Inspector could not be in a position to ask the management of the Plaza to get the [above-mentioned] deficiencies rectified to avoid any mishap.”
Now, which authority should and will warn the innocent general public which uses this string of hazardous incomplete commercial buildings, the employees of the shopkeepers, the men, and particularly the women and children who shop there (every third shop is either a jeweller, a cloth seller, or a seller of household goods) and the predominantly female students of the so-called fashion and design ‘university’?