CDA cleans out Faisal Mosque

Around 300 workers from different departments were deputed to the Faisal Mosque on the weekend for a special cleanliness drive to address complaints of poor cleanliness in the vicinity and areas adjoining the main complex of the mosque.

In a statement issued on Sunday, the Capital Development Authority (CDA) said that on special directives of the authority’s chairman Aamer Ali Ahmed, workers were pulled from the Maintenance Directorate, the Parliament lodges and Hostels and other departments for the two-day drive.

The main hall and other floors of the mosque, footpaths leading to the complex, covered area, fountain, stairs, washrooms and ablution areas were deep cleaned.

Additionally, all windows and doors were cleaned while electrical installations were dusted, and paintwork in several areas was touched up.

The special cleanliness operation started on Saturday when the inner sections of the covered area were cleared. On Sunday, the external areas of the mosque were carried out.

The cleanliness drive came after a meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Climate Change had raised concerns over the level of cleanliness at the mosque.

The committee had been told that janitorial services at the mosque had been outsourced to a private firm, Dani Enterprises, on a contract worth Rs13.8 million. The company has in turn deputed 74 employees to maintain and clean the mosque.

However, members of the committee had expressed their dismay at the poor level of cleanliness at the mosque and questioned the CDA about the feasibility of such a contract when there were no visible results.

The committee had subsequently demanded that the contract should be cancelled immediately.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 28^th, 2020.