By Bilal Kanjal
ISLAMABAD: Major drains and nullahs in most parts of the federal capital are posing a serious threat for the dwellers of Islamabad, despite tall claims of the Capital Development Authority (CDA).
Due to the sheer negligence of the Metropolitan Corporation Islamabad (MCI) and Capital Development Authority (CDA), the recent rains have taken four lives.
The residents attribute their dilemma to the apathy of concerned authorities, who are reluctant to take responsibility. The garbage in the nullah not only creates an unpleasant smell but also blocks rainwater from passing through.
Asim Shahzad, who lives near the Imambargah Qadeemi, said that the local administration had failed to clean the drains and nullahs. He added that when it rains, the sewage enters into the different houses in Imambargah.
“We are paying taxes for everything but in return, the capital administration is giving us no facility. It spends billions of rupees on unworthy mega projects like Metro bus but pays no heed to resolve the basic civic issues”, he said.
The monsoon’s first shower caused a flash flood in the twin cities, exposing the inability of the civic bodies to tackle the catastrophe even after being warned about the choked nullahs filled with filth and garbage. However, capital authorities remained unmoved by every warning from the relevant departments.
Talking to Pakistan Today, Dr Muzaffar from PIMS said that several water-borne diseases terrorise the population include malaria, dengue, dysentery, cholera and worm infestation.
During a survey conducted by Pakistan Today, it was learnt that these streams of water are clean and pure before entering the area of Islamabad but as they enter the populated area of the capital, the streams get polluted because of a poor management of disposal of waste and a substandard sanitation system.
The authorities seem to have learnt no lesson from the last year’s monsoon when rain and flash flood wreaked havoc in the federal capital.
While talking with Pakistan Today, CDA Spokesperson Mazhar Hussain said that the civic agency has come up with a proper plan for monsoon rains in the capital and workers are ready to tackle the upcoming situation. In response to another question, he said that streets are regularly cleaned by workers, despite citizens dumping garbage every now and then.