Rain deaths

This year’s Eid holidays were interrupted by heavy torrential rains that lashed various parts of Sindh and caused widespread destruction and chaos. At least 26 people were killed as a result while thousands were left stranded without shelter, electricity or food. Karachi was the worst hit as the Sindh government had to impose a rain emergency after several localities were submerged in water. DHA received the highest rainfall of around 120mm.

As of yet, 9 rain-related deaths have been reported in the city. The situation is a horrendous indictment of years of negligence and mismanagement by state apparatuses, the real state sector, housing societies, political parties and NDMA — most of whom were completely silent during the onslaught. Poor urban planning and lack of infrastructure development as a result of corruption and illegal practices, such as handing out construction licences willy-nilly, has led to severe urban flooding.

The situation was made even worse when sand and offal from animal sacrifice piled up onto streets and clogged drainage lines even more.

Families have had to relocate from flooded houses while some areas have had no electricity for up to 30 hours. Houses around Gujjar and Orangi nullahs are inundated with sewage and rainwater due to lack of planning. Thankfully, authorities arose from their deep year-long slumber and worked towards clearing roads and blockages. But this is far from the ultimate solution. What Karachi desperately needs is a rethinking of existing mitigation systems and a reconstruction of drainage systems as well as housing and transport infrastructure.

Nullahs working at full capacity clearly indicate they are not capable of withstanding these increasing effects of climate change. For this, a holistic long-term plan needs to be charted and stakeholders need to collectively work towards making Karachi a suitable place to live.