Supply of contaminated water leaves people at risk

Almost 80 percent of all water supply schemes in the city have been supplying contaminated water to citizens, exposing them to fatal diseases like hepatitis, jaundice and diarrhoea. The Technical Assessment Survey of water supply schemes conducted in 7 tehsils has revealed that these schemes have been supplying piped water for drinking and household purposes to around 1.496 million people.
The survey conducted by the Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources (PCRWR) has revealed that the performance of these schemes, in terms of quality and quantity of water, is extremely poor.
Around 38 percent of these schemes have not been functioning, and 60 percent of the population is not being supplied water by these schemes. A PCRWR official said lack of proper management, operation and maintenance of the water systems has become a critical issue in the district. Around 68 percent of 148 non-functional schemes have been temporarily closed, while 32 percent are permanently closed. According to the survey, these schemes have shut down due to lack of repair of mechanical and electrical components, missing transformers, breakage and damage in water distribution systems, insufficient water at the source and communal disputes on collection of funds. These reasons have been evident in 21- 30 water schemes.
PCRWR Chairman Dr Muhammad Aslam Tahir said water from 76 percent of the functional schemes is unsafe for drinking, and water supplied from 75 percent of these schemes has microbiological contaminants.
The survey shows that awareness about the hazards of unsafe drinking water, and the importance of safe drinking water is negligible. The general public appears to have no concept of the need to drink purified water.
The survey has revealed that 27 percent of all schemes are over 20 years old, 44 percent are between 10 and 20 years old, while the remaining are less than 10 years old.