No headway in Nehr-e-Khayyam cleaning
A signboard of Karachi Neighbourhood improvement Project stands in front of Nehr-e-Khayyam filled with filth and sewage. PHOTOS: JALA QURESHI/EXPRESS
Originally built as a stormwater drain, the roughly 10-feet-deep and one kilometer long Nehr-e-Khayyam is a sore sight.
Even though it was meant for draining rainwater into the sea, the channel which runs from the Gizri crossing to Ocean Mall, Clifton, and onto the sea, is filled with garbage and sewage.
In fact, water travels both ways in Nehr-e-Khayyam - during low tide, from the ground to the sea and during high tide, from the sea to the ground. Currently, it is an example of government apathy and wastage of public funds.
After the Sindh cabinet gave a go-ahead in 2019, an agreement was inked within months, between PANI a US based NGO and the Sindh government, under which the former was to plant greenery on both sides of Nehr-e-Khayyam, develop a park and adopt it for 30 years.
The recreational space was to be built within three years of the agreement. Besides, to segregate and ensure the smooth flow of sewerage, which continues to flow through the water channel, a separate conduit was to be constructed by the provincial government in the portion proposed for the park's development.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 12th, 2022.