Karachi's water woes

In a city already parched for water, unscrupulous businessmen behind the predatory water tanker networks have exacerbated the problem by siphoning off a large share of Karachi's water supply and then selling it back to residents at exorbitant prices. The scale of this theft is staggering. Karachi only receives around 550 to 650 million gallons per day (MGD) against demand for 1,200 MGD.

Compounding this scarcity is the fact that the tanker mafia diverts much of that water through a network of illegal hydrants that tap directly into main water lines. Experts estimate that the illicit enterprise, which allegedly has the blessings of politicians and city managers, generates daily revenues of over Rs1.2 billion, creating a powerful financial incentive to maintain the status quo.

This systematic theft creates artificial scarcity, which in turn generates demand for the tankers from what is effectively a captive market, leading to even higher profit margins. The burden falls hardest on the poor, as households in slums and other informal settlements can spend between 15% and 60% of their monthly income on water, while those in affluent areas with reliable connections to supply lines pay as little as 2%, according to reported estimates. This inequity eventually goes beyond economics and enters the realm of public health, as some tankers have been linked to contaminated water that has caused outbreaks of cholera and diarrhea, which in turn claim thousands of lives every year.

The failure of Karachi's city managers and elected officials to take meaningful action to correct this heinous wrong is a microcosm of the governance failures at every level that have helped make Karachi rank below several war-torn cities in terms of livability and quality of life. Indeed, city managers' failure is so astounding that they can't even perform the most basic work of upgrading pipes — which would also technically benefit the water mafia — to reduce wastage and improve line water quality.