Impure aqua: Contaminated water supply in city decried

Students protest unacceptable living conditions in Karachi and adjoining villages.

KARACHI: Youngsters from the Nooriabad and Ibrahim Haideri regions held a protest against contaminated water outside the Karachi Press Club on Sunday.

The youngsters were also joined by students of different schools and talked about having to use contaminated water for years, demanding the government to address this issue immediately. The protest, which was arranged by the Pakistan Relief Foundation (PRF), displayed banners and pictures of water-born diseases in different villages near Nooriabad due to the toxic water used by villagers. Protestors displayed bottles which contained samples of the toxic water, which was green in colour. This water is not only being used around Nooriabad’s villages but also in other parts of Karachi, claimed the protestors.

“We are using the same water that is being used in Nooriabad and Ibrahim Haideri,” said Ayesha Haleem, one of the protest’s leaders. “It is our responsibility to create public awareness and apply pressure on the government to resolve this serious issue.”

Speaking on the issue, protestors highlighted that the basic issue was being neglected by the state and it is time that portable water was provided to these areas. Toxic water is being released into Keenjhar Lake, from where it is supplied to Karachi, they claimed.

“Over 500 children of a village near Nooriabad are infected with skin diseases because they use contaminated water,” Ayesha said. “The same diseases will start appearing in Karachi in the near future if appropriate measures aren’t taken quickly.”

Published in The Express Tribune, October 21^st, 2013.