No end in sight to city's water woes

Repairs completed, but restoration of supply may take another 48 hours

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KARACHI:

There seems no end in sight to the water woes of the metropolitan city as millions of Karachiite continue to endure grueling shortages despite the supposed completion of repair work on major pipelines.

Officials from the Karachi Water and Sewerage Corporation (KW&SC) claimed on Tuesday that the water supply situation would improve by Wednesday. However, the Dhabeji pumping station, a key source of the city's water supply, has not yet resumed full capacity operations, meaning it could take up to another 48 hours, if not more, for normal water distribution to be restored.

A KW&SC spokesperson confirmed on Wednesday that repair work on water pipelines at multiple locations had been completed, and the supply had been partially restored. However, the metropolis has already lost 1.25 billion gallons of water over the past five days due to the ongoing repairs, impacting water availability in many neighbourhoods.

As a result, majority of Karachiites have been forced to rely on private water tankers at exorbitant prices, putting extra burden on their monthly budgets. The KW&SC had initially expected the repairs to take 72 hours, but alleged complications led to further delays.

The work was finally completed late Tuesday night into Wednesday, but the phased reactivation of the Dhabeji pumps continues to disrupt the water distribution system.

The repairs were carried out at 12 locations, including Maroora Goth, Kiran Hospital, Al-Azhar Garden, SPARCO, Old Sabzi Mandi, Kashmir Road, Peli Kothi, and Liaquatabad, according to the KW&SC spokesperson. Four new valves were installed within the premises of Karachi University to improve water supply management.

The repair work also involved fixing leaks in Phase-1 of Siphon-19, repairing a 54-inch diameter pipeline on University Road near Old Sabzi Mandi, and addressing issues in a 48-inch diameter pipeline stretching from Old Sabzi Mandi to Liaquatabad. An Inspection Tee has also been installed in the FTM line at the Lyari River to enhance system monitoring.

After the repairs, the KW&SC spokesperson assured that water shortages in several neighbourhoods-such as Lyari, Saddar, Old City Area, Clifton, Chanesar Town, Jinnah Town, Nazimabad, North Nazimabad, and Central District-would soon be resolved. However, due to the complexity of the pumping system's phased restoration, it may take up to 48 more hours for water supply to stabilise across the city. The latest shutdown, which initially only involved repairs in two areas - Maroora Goth in Gulshan-e-Iqbal, and Peli Kothi in Liaquatabad - has since expanded, with alleged repairs being carried out at more than a dozen locations in the city. The water crisis in Karachi is not new. It is a chronic issue which speaks volumes for the apathy of the provincial government and the municipal authorities.