THOSE of us who think that Pakistani book readers and art lovers were introduced to graphic art a little later than the rest of the world, well, not true. They were never behind. For example, on May 6, 1974 an exhibition of Soviet graphic art opened at the Arts Council the day before. It contained 64 prints in black and white and colour. The subjects touched upon in the show varied from civil war, the struggle against Nazi Germany, economic and cultural development of the Soviet Union and landscapes. The artists taking part in the exhibition had reproduced the life of their people with ‘fidelity and vividness’. The artworks included exhibits made by masters such as I Golitsyn, G Zakharov, A Borodin, K Kalinkocheva, Y Moguilevesky, G Korllis and V Vetrogonsky.

Staying in the realm of creativity, on May 8, the wife of Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, Begum Nusrat Bhutto called on citizens, particularly writers and politicians, to continue the struggle for improving the life of the common man. She was speaking at the launch of Yunus Said’s first book Death by Hanging, a collection of short stories, at a local hotel in the city. She was of the view that society was still bedevilled with social evils, injustice and inequalities. It’s for the writers, journalists, politicians and the intelligentsia to use their capabilities to do away with those evils. Paying tribute to the author she remarked, “Although all his stories have validity which everyone will recognise, it is those which are rooted in the experience of the subcontinent, especially Pakistan, which I found the most moving. In these, I feel that the writer himself is most involved.”

While the cultural landscape of Karachi was bright and sunny, on the civic front things looked a trifle gloomy. On May 8, the media lamented that several areas in the city were facing water shortage. As summer set in, the problem had become acute. The worst affected were the residents of Orangi, Qasba Colony, New Karachi, Federal B Area, Liaquatabad and some parts of Nazimabad.

To aggravate the situation, on May 12 it was announced that water supply from the Clifton-Gizri main to Drigh Road would remain closed from May 13 midnight to May 14 because modifications were being carried out in the main. The areas to be affected by the decision were Clifton, Bath Island, Gizri, the JPMC, the NICVD, T&T Colony, Delhi Colony and Punjab Colony.

That was not the only problem faced by Karachiites that week. On May 9, inflation was the subject that got the media’s attention as well. It was reported that there had been an increase in the prices of onions by 40 percent and potatoes by 30 percent. According to green grocers who dealt in wholesale business, the hike was a reaction to the announcement made by the Agricultural Adviser to the Prime Minister that onions were likely to be exported. They also put blame on panic buying of the consumers. They claimed that huge stocks of onions and potatoes were available with the wholesalers. If the panic buying did not stop, the prices were likely to go further up.

Published in Dawn, May 6th, 2024