Citizens left parched by water crisis in Ramazan

As the citizens of Hyderabad are already suffering from high levels of Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) in water, the workers of Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA) added to their miseries by suspending water supply as a protest. The employees of WASA cut off the water supply from the New Filtration Plant on Jamshoro road, which is the largest plant in the city, to City, Latifabad and Qasimabad talukas.

The supply was cut off at 10.45am after which WASA Acting Managing Director Zeeshan Malik reached out to the protesters and urged them to restore the supply in interest of the public.

He also assured them, on behalf of the Director General Hyderabad Development Authority (HDA), Zahid Hussain Shar, that their two or three salaries would be paid before Eidul Fitr holidays. The supply was restored after four hours by 2.45pm.

The protesting workers claim that the authority has defaulted payment of their up to seven-month salaries and pensions. During the month of Ramazan, the employees time and again urged the HDA and WASA to release their salaries but their demands were met with assurances only.

The HDA is awaiting a financial bailout, which is receives on quarterly basis, from the Sindh government. The workers, meanwhile, have been asking the HDA to release their salaries from whatever funds that are available with the authority.

Rising TDS

Meanwhile, as the level of Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) keeps surging up in the Indus River at Kotri barrage near Hyderabad, WASA on Monday announced that it has stopped taking water from the river and its canals. The TDS level, as high as 875 milligram per liter, was tested in one of the samples collected from the filtration plants.

"Starting at 500 mg/l TDS, the reading has spiked alarmingly to 875 mg/l today," wrote the MD WASA to Commissioner Hyderabad division on Monday. He shared in his letter four separate TDS readings which were taken from the samples collected from New Filter Plant, Hala Naka Filter Plant, Preetabad Filter Plant and Hussainabad Filter Plant. The TDS levels of 875, 827, 837 and 869 mg/l were recorded, respectively.

"This sharp rise in TDS levels poses a significant risk to human health," the MD underlined. He apprised the Commissioner that WASA will utilized the limited stored water in its reservoirs to supply to the consumers for the next two to three days. Until then, he urged the commissioner, to ensure that the Sindh Irrigation Department released larger quantity of fresh water from Sukkur barrage to Kotri to dilute the TDS levels.

The river water at Kotri Barrage becomes polluted due to discharge of Manchar Lake's contaminated water in Indus. The TDS at Manchar reaches to several thousand milligrams per litre because the entire lake is constantly polluted by the Main Nara Valley (MNV) drain which empties in the lake. The drain was supposed to flow towards the sea through Right Bank Outfall Drain (RBOD) but the project's completion has been delayed by around two decades.

The WASA MD apprised the commissioner that they have water storage of up to three days at the Hala Naka and Preetabad filter plants and of two days at New filter plant. There was water available for only one day at Hussainabad and there is no storage in Latifabad taluka.

Malik also referred to March 31 media talk of Sindh Irrigation Minister Jam Khan Shoro in which he conceded that the TDS level cannot be decreased through the available filtration processes or by boiling. He added that the minister said the only way to reduce the TDS is by enhancing the quantum of fresh water.

"... continued consumption of this water poses serious health risks and WASA can't be held responsible for any resulting consequences," the MD said. Malik also underscored the need of immediately supplying fresh water in Indus because with very limited storage in its reservoirs, WASA may end up creating serious water shortage in the city.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 2^nd, 2024.