Zardari wants Karachi flood protection plan

Asks Sindh govt to adopt sustainable, long-term sewage and stormwater management strategy

ISLAMABAD:

President Asif Ali Zardari called on Monday to devise a comprehensive plan on a priority basis to prevent urban flooding in Karachi during the current monsoon rains.

During a meeting at the President House, Zardari stated that the Sindh government should adopt a sustainable and long-term strategy based on international best practices to manage sewage and stormwater effectively.

He said this would help save Karachi from urban flooding.

The meeting, focused on preventing urban flooding, environmental degradation, and promoting sustainable water resource development, included CM Shah, Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab, provincial ministers, Sindh Chief Secretary Syed Asif Hyder Shah, KWSC CEO Syed Salahuddin, senior government and military officials, and local and international water management experts.

President Zardari received a comprehensive presentation from international water and sewage management experts, who proposed various solutions for urban flooding and sewage management in Karachi, inspired by projects like Washington DC’s tunnel sewer systems, London’s super sewer project, and Singapore’s deep tunnel sewerage system.

Speaking on the occasion, the president underlined the need for completing a feasibility study to control flooding in Karachi through tunnelling options within three months.

He stressed that Karachi and its coastal areas needed to be “made clean and brought at par with” other metropolitan cities of the world.

He urged the Sindh government to approach international donors for environmental financing, given the project’s significant environmental impacts.

The construction of the wastewater treatment system would also help supply treated water to Balochistan for agriculture and promote the fisheries sector.

President Zardari also noted that Hyderabad faced similar urban flooding and sewage issues that needed to be addressed urgently.

During the briefing, experts proposed developing a network of small and large sewer tunnels under existing roads in high-flood zones of Karachi. They highlighted that modern underground tunnelling techniques would minimise public disruption, traffic interference, and land ownership issues.

Experts informed the attendees that Karachi generates nearly 450 million gallons per day (MGD) of sewage, which is collected in open drains and released untreated into the sea, polluting the marine ecosystem.

The existing network of drains has limited capacity, absorbing only around 50 per cent of rainwater under normal circumstances, leading to urban flooding.