The elected government of the federal capital on Tuesday launched punitive action against water thieves in the city, disconnecting at least 10 illegal connections apart from taking actions against its officials for alleged negligence.
Illegal water connections steal supply from consumers who regularly pay their water bills, said Islamabad Metropolitan Corporation (IMC) Sheikh Anser Aziz, as he directed the corporation to step up its drive for detecting and disconnecting illegal water connections.
Controlling water theft will substantially increase the supply of water during the hot summer months he said.
Meanwhile, IMC Deputy Mayor Zeeshan Naqvi on Tuesday visited areas suffering from water scarcity in the city and ordered to cut 10 illegal connections identified in Sector I-10.
Later, while talking to the media, the deputy mayor said that they had also taken action against negligent IMC officials. In this regard, Naqvi said that an official who oversees water supply in the area has been suspended along with six-tube well operators and a driver who were found delinquent in their duties.
“Water shortage during the summer season will not be tolerated at any cost,” Naqvi said, adding that the IMC is repairing all dilapidated water supply lines in the city
Reiterating the corporation’s commitment to providing an uninterrupted supply of water to every sector of Islamabad, the deputy mayor said that he has directed IMC workers to expedite work on filtration plants and tube wells in the city.
Cleaning streams
With the city receiving heavy pre-monsoon rains, the IMC has cleaned multiple nullahs, or natural streams which criss-cross the federal capital, to prevent urban flooding in upcoming monsoon season.
"In the wake of monsoon, we have launched a 'nullah cleaning' drive under the 'Clean and Green Pakistan' campaign to remove waste from the natural streams in phases," said IMC Sanitation Director Sardar Khan Zimri.
In the first phase of the drive, he said that the sanitation department will conduct a survey to analyse the situation of the city's nullahs.
So far, the sanitary workers have removed major blockades such as fallen trees, solid waste and debris from 20 streams located in different sectors including sectors F-6, F-7, F-10, F-11, G-10 and others. "The drive has entered its second phase in which minor streams will be cleaned," he said. The sanitation director added that his department has set a target of cleaning all streams before monsoon rains begin in earnest.
The remaining nullahs will be cleared shortly, he added.
To a query, he said the smart lockdowns, imposed in the federal capital to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus (Covid-19), had lessened the load of garbage collection on IMCs’ Sanitation Wing.
"The situation enables us to depute our staff for nullahs' cleansing after disengaging them from the commercial areas," he added.
"People living along the banks of nullahs are a major source of pollution in these streams,” Zimri said.
With additional input by APP
Published in The Express Tribune, July 1st, 2020.
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