The Sindh government, KWSB and the district administration has once again failed this city. Different areas of Karachi have been facing acute shortage of water since months now.
According to KWSB sources the water requirement of Karachi is 1,000 million gallons per day (mgd), whereas it is being supplied 550 mgd. The Hub Dam that used to supply 100 mgd has also already dried due to lack of rainfall. Hence the city is facing a shortage of 450mgd water.
Water shortage problem in Karachi has aggravated and no one at the helm of affairs seems to pay heed to the acute water crisis. Since water like air is crucial for existence people are left with no option but to buy water and that too at exorbitant prices.
Karachiites have been left at the mercy of tanker mafia who are fleecing consumers by charging Rs3,000-8,000 per tanker. The rates of water tankers vary from one locality to the other. Residents of various water-starved localities in Karachi who are convinced that the government shall do nothing to provide clean and safe water have started boring wells.
It has been reported times and again that the government has conducted operations against the illegal water hydrants but it is evident that the Sindh government has miserably failed to stop water theft. It is now a known fact that the water is being siphoned through illegal connections to illegal hydrants and it seems that the tanker mafia seems to enjoy covert patronage and support of politicians and the corrupt KWSB bureaucracy.
It is about time that the government paid attention to the looming water crisis and ensure smooth supply of clean and safe potable water to residents of the city because it is not possible for everyone to afford water tankers or bore wells.
I am cognizant of the fact that apart from water theft, massive influx of migrants, pipeline leaks and scarcity of rainfall have also led to the water woes. But still it is for the governments, federal or provincial, to initiate projects to meet the rising water demand of the metropolis.
MUHAMMED ZAFIR ZIA
Karachi