• From upscale to low-income areas, residents complain of weeks without water as demand peaks during Eidul Azha
• Disrupted supply leaves many people dependent on expensive tankers for animal care, sanitation and household needs
• KWSC chief claims utility taking all-out measures to ensure ‘uninterrupted supply’ during Eid days
KARACHI: With Eidul Azha being celebrated on Wednesday (today), residents of the metropolis are marking the second month of an acute water crisis that has left taps dry, tanker queues long and tempers frayed.
For many families, the festival of sacrifice now means sacrificing sleep to chase tankers, and sacrificing savings to buy water for ritual washings, animal care and sanitation.
This is not the first time the city has faced Eid amid a severe water shortage. Residents call it a grim tradition of the Karachi Water and Sewerage Corporation (KWSC) to fail during the city’s most critical moments — Eids, Ramazan, Eid Miladun Nabi and Muharram — when water is indispensable for both ritual and routine.
Since late March, a series of line bursts, underground leaks, power breakdowns at pumping stations, and damage to key mains have choked supply across the city, turning routine chores into daily battles.
Speaking to Dawn, KWSC Chief Executive Officer Ahmed Ali, however, maintained that the utility “was ensuring normal supply during Eid”.
He blamed K-Electric (KE) and frequent power breakdowns for the disruptions. “KWSC relies on KE for electricity, and those abrupt outages damage main lines, disrupting water supply,” he added.
The water utility chief said comprehensive arrangements had been made to ensure an uninterrupted water supply and efficient sewage management during the festive season.
He said all executive engineers would remain on standby, with staff and machinery available round the clock.
However, the water crisis is set to hit hardest during Eidul Azha, when water demand surges for cleaning, animal care, and sanitation as families prepare for qurbani.
Akbar Hussain, a shopkeeper in Orangi Town, said they were sacrificing a cow at home, but there had been no water supply for days. “We will sacrifice the cow in the morning, and I thought that KWSC would help us by providing water, but the utility didn’t do that,” he lamented.
In late March, repeated power outages at critical pumping stations slashed supply during peak summer demand, with tail-end localities in Lyari, Saddar, Orangi and Korangi reporting dry lines for days.
Over the past two months, opposition parties in the Sindh Assembly and the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation City Council have repeatedly criticised the provincial government and the city’s sole water utility in their sessions for failing to ensure a smooth supply.
In April, the city faced a 48-hour shortfall of 250 million gallons per day (MGD) as work began to connect a new line to the existing network at the Dhabeji pumping station. But supply remained disrupted for two weeks after another main line ruptured during a sudden power breakdown.
May began with three 72-inch diameter lines at the Dhabeji pumping station bursting on a Monday following a power breakdown, causing a further shortfall.
Tanker prices soar
While taps ran dry for weeks in many localities and for over two months in others, desperate residents turned to tankers, but with supply so limited, most waited seven to 10 days for one, and many never got it at all. Prices for water tankers have since doubled.
“It’s been 11 weeks without water in our lane,” said Ejaz Ahmed, a wedding hall employee in Khokhrapar, Malir. “We beg tankers every day. They take Rs8,000 and say ‘wait your turn’. What are we supposed to do?” he said.
A resident of PECHS said he had registered for a KWSC tanker 10 days ago. “No one came, and I don’t know what to do in the morning,” he dejectedly said.
Residents in several areas, including Clifton, DHA, Gulshan-i-Iqbal, Gulistan-i-Jauhar and North Nazimabad, said that private tankers had doubled their rates.
A resident said that private tankers are now asking for Rs12,000. “It was Rs6,000 last month,” he added.
In low-income areas and shantytowns, vendors on pushcarts, donkey carts and Suzuki pickups selling small tanks also charged desperate residents exorbitant prices.
Meanwhile, a water utility spokesman said that the water tanker service would remain suspended on the first two days of Eid.
It may be noted that only 15 to 18 MGD of water is supplied through tankers across the city, which receives 650 MGD against a demand of over 1,250 MGD.
Published in Dawn, May 27th, 2026
