KARACHI, July 7: The managing director of the KWSB, Brig Iftikhar Haider, expressed his satisfaction over the pace of cleaning of the city’s major nullahs and storm-water drains. Around 2.5 million cubic feet filth from various nullahs has already been pulled out and disposed off at dumping sites, he informed.

Speaking at a news conference at the KWSB’s 9th-Mile office here on Friday, he said that although the KWSB was assigned the task of cleaning the city’s nullahs on June 15, the KWSB’s team headed by Chief Engineer Asoodomal had done a commendable job in such a short span of time.

The KWSB chief said that a final decision of making the KWSB responsible for cleaning all the city’s nullahs including those which fell in the jurisdiction of the cantonment boards was taken at a meeting held with the Sindh governor in the chair and was attended, among others, by provincial chief secretary, city nazim, secretary local government and DCO.

The KWSB took the new task as a challenge and, so far, its team comprising superintending engineers and executive engineers (sewerage) of all the 18 towns are making all-out efforts to clean the city’s 63 major nullahs, having a length of 232km and 226 storm-water drains of all the 18 towns with a length of 768km.

Lauding the town nazims for extending their cooperation to the KWSB in getting the nullahs cleaned, he said that the KWSB team had, so far, completed an overall 47 per cent of the nullah’s cleaning work.

Giving town-wise break-down of nullahs cleaning work, he said that 35 per cent work had been accomplished in SITE Town, 30per cent in Baldia, 75 per cent in Orangi, 75 per cent in North Nazimabad, 50 per cent in North Karachi, 40 per cent in Gulberg, 60 per cent in Gadap, 75 per cent in Shah Faisal, 50 per cent in Landhi, 50 per cent in Korangi, 50 per cent in Malir, 30 per cent in Bin Qasim, 20 per cent in Keamari, 30 per cent in Lyari, 20 per cent in Saddar, 35 per cent in Jamshed, 75 per cent in Gulshan and 30 per cent in the Liaquatabad Town.

Referring to the arrangements made for quick disposal of the filth being pulled out from the nullahs, he said that he had even authorised the SEs of the towns to hire private dumpers for the disposal of the same at dumping sites.

At the outset, the KWSB chief said that City Nazim Syed Mustafa Kamal had written letters to all the town nazims, asking them to transfer their budgets for cleaning nullahs to the KWSB.

He said that the KWSB was, at present, spending Rs50 million for cleaning nullahs from its own resources but later on the city government would be giving a compatible amount to the KWSB under the head of nullahs cleaning.