Karachi nullahs, riverbeds cleaning ‘to start in Sept’

Minister says work will take a year to complete

ISLAMABAD:

Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Asad Umar on Wednesday said that work on the project for clearing nullahs and riverbeds in Karachi would start in September.

Heavy rains on Tuesday wreaked havoc in the provincial capital of Sindh, with the country’s financial hub Karachi battling record downpour that had claimed the lives of at least five people and severed road access to entire localities.

Large areas were covered in water and mud. In some areas, floodwaters rose to the first storey of small buildings. It had been raining steadily for about 5 hours, and the Met office has issued a severe weather warning for Thursday (today).

Reviewed NDMA plan for clearing nullahs/ river beds & solve problem of karachi drowning every time it rains heavily. Inshallah will have plan approved & work started in Sep. Completion in 1 year. Largest tax paying city of Pakistan deserves better than what it is facing today

— Asad Umar (@Asad_Umar) August 26, 2020

In a tweet, the minister said that he reviewed the plan prepared by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) to clean nullahs and riverbeds in the metropolitan city of Sindh.

“The megacity drowned every time it rained heavily,” he said, adding that after the plan’s approval, work on the project would start in September and its completion date would be one year.

“Largest tax paying city of Pakistan deserves better than what it is facing today,” he added.

At the onset of the monsoon this year, the NDMA was tasked to assist the cleanup and relief operations in Karachi.

Over 6,000 tonnes of garbage have been removed from different nullahs in Karachi as the de-silting operation continued in the metropolis, said a National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) spokesman on August 5.

According to the spokesperson, the Frontier Works Organisation (FWO) had cleared 25 choked points of three major nullahs, out of a total of 40 such points affecting the smooth flow of rainwater. “The FWO has so far cleared up to 40 per cent of the troubled spots of Gujjar nullah, 45 per cent of Korangi nullah and 51 per cent of blocked spots of Mowach Goth nullah,” he added.

Of the 552 large and small stormwater drains in Karachi - including 38 major nullahs- cleaning efforts have already been started in 22 of them on an emergency basis.

The authorities were utilising 24 excavators, two loaders, 90 dumpers and 224 labourers in the cleanliness operation, apprised the spokesperson, adding that on Monday alone, the FWO had lifted 4,364 tonnes of garbage from nullahs in the city.