Two more arrested for open littering in Karachi

Number of people arrested for violating the ban on throwing garbage in public places rises to eight

KARACHI: The number of people arrested for open littering rose to eight in Karachi, after police claimed to have arrested two more persons on Friday for violating the ban on littering, spitting and throwing debris in public places imposed by the Sindh government.

Tipu Sultan Police claimed to have arrested Muhammad Sohail red-handed while he was disposing of garbage on a footpath near Shahrah-e-Faisal. According to police, Head Constable Zakir, along with other officials, was patrolling the streets in a police mobile when they saw Sohail dumping garbage next to an eatery, Laziza Chaat Shop.

In another incident, Shahrah-e-Noor Jahan claimed to have caught and booked Musharraf for dumping large quantities of garbage into a nullah. An FIR under section 188 of the Pakistan Penal Code has been registered against the arrested.

Earlier, on Thursday, Sukhan Police had arrested one person, and Korangi Industrial Area Police another five, for violating the ban placed on littering public spaces under Section 144 of the Pakistan Penal Code.

In light of the recent ban imposed by the provincial government, Central SSP Arif Aslam Rao has requested the citizens to dispose of garbage at sites reserved for dumping waste. He said that strict action will be taken against anyone found to be violating the ban.

Citizens' woes

While the police continue to take action against throwing garbage on roads, as part of the 'Clean My Karachi' drive, citizens find themselves in a fix. They complain that the government has not made proper arrangements for dumping garbage at reserved spots and that legal action is being taken against people violating the ban but no steps have been take to raise awareness about it.

According to the arrested citizens, they did not know which sites have been reserved by the government for garbage dumping. The Sindh government should first inform the public about garbage dumping sites and then take legal action against offenders, they stressed.

They said that 60% of Karachi is comprised of slums and garbage dumping sites are very few. Also, no proper mechanism has been set up for door-to-door garbage collection, they added.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 28^th, 2019.