Petition disposed of: Court orders KWSB to close down illegal hydrants

Water board to take over such hydrants within 15 days.

KARACHI:

A court has ordered the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board (KWSB) to close down all illegal hydrants in the city and submit a report on August 11.

A Sindh High Court division bench, comprising Justice Maqbool Baqar and Justice Ghulam Sarwar Korai, gave the orders on Friday. The judges also asked the water board’s managing director, who attended the hearing, to take over the illegal hydrants within 15 days.

The bench was hearing a constitutional petition filed by Tariq and Brothers, a water tanker company that challenged the re-invitation of tenders for operating the Lalazar Hydrant in Keamari Town, which was earlier awarded to the petitioner in an open auction.

The petitioner claimed he had paid all the dues and had completed all formalities, but after two months, the notice to re-invite tenders was issued forcing him to file the petition.

During the hearing on Friday, the petitioner raised the issue of illegal hydrants in the city. He said that the KWSB was not taking action against illegal hydrants, whose operators steal millions of gallons of water from the water board’s system. Instead, successful bidders with a good reputation are being harassed, he said.

The judges disposed of the petition and told the petitioner and the intervenor, S Shamraiz (a water carrier company), to operate the hydrant jointly until the contract expires in July this year.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 28^th, 2011.