KARACHI, Aug 23: The facility of piped water will now be made available to the population on Shamspir Island, falling in Keamari Town jurisdiction, through a pipeline passing through seawaters and the new network is expected to be made operational by Friday.

The project for sinking such a pipeline connecting the islands with Yunisbad had been conceived in 1985 but the plan to make the project functional could not materialise in the next two decades for various reasons.

Availability of drinking water facility at the island has long been the most pressing problem for its backward population which is lacks other basic amenities. In the absence of a water supply network, the islanders have been getting potable water in drums brought by boat operators who would sell the water on the island.

The islanders complain that the tap water supply project had been in doldrums because the quota of water meant for them used to be diverted to some other areas allegedly to the benefit of a national security agency.

According to Keamari Town Nazim Humayun Khan, the project would now be made operational from Friday with its formal inauguration.

The nazim said that the town administration had accorded top priority to this issue and the efforts made in this regard had produced positive results. He pointed out that an understanding had been reached with the concerned government agency for water supply through the already laid pipeline.

He also said that stagnant rainwater elsewhere in the town had been drained out in most areas, including Mauripur Village and Machhar Colony. He noted that Salehabad was one of the worst-hit localities where filthy water had entered houses.