‘Must work together, irrespective of jurisdiction’

Six KE feeders in DHA remain shut due to water in houses, CM told

This is our city and we must work together irrespective of jurisdictions, said Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah on Monday.

Presiding over a meeting at the CM House, he asked the Karachi commissioner to prepare an inventory of dewatering machines, pumps, suction machines and other equipment available with various local bodies and the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board (KWSB) so that they may be mobilised as needed.

Shah lauded the efforts of all local bodies, KWSB, the Sindh Solid Waste Management Board and the Provincial Disaster Management Authority following the heavy rains. The CM noted that parts of Kharadar and Yousuf Goth as well as some other streets remained to be cleared of rainwater, ordering that these areas be cleared soon as well.

He was informed that the KWSB was still working on dewatering in Defence Housing Authority (DHA) Phase 6.

Besides, six of K-Electric's 12 feeders that had been non-functional in DHA on Monday afternoon were made operational later in the day. Those still shut could not be made functional due to water accumulated in the basements of certain houses, he was told.

Shah asked the KWSB to coordinate with Cantonment Board Clifton and provide assistance if needed. For the rest of Phase 6, he said he had installed suction and pumping machines to dispose of stagnant water.

The CM also visited the KE grid station at Khayaban-e-Shaheen, where rainwater had collected. Pumping machines were provided to KE to clear the grid station and 27 sub-stations.

Meanwhile, the provincial works secretary was tasked with reparation of damaged and sunken roads, while the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation was asked to repair the Korangi Causeway, which the CM was told had been opened for traffic.

With regards to Mirpurkhas, Thar, Badin, Sujawal and Hyderabad, the CM asked that preparations be made to shift people from low-lying areas to safer locations, with food, water, medicines, and other essentials provided to them.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 1^st, 2020.