Rains expose tall claims of CDGK

Thoroughfares flooded with rainwater and dumped with fallen trees across the metropolis have left Karachiites raising eyebrows on sky-high claims of the city government. The City District Government of Karachi (CDGK) here on Tuesday said that other agencies should also be questioned for the human and property damage in their respective areas.
"The city government controls only 33 percent area of the city while other agencies should be made accountable for the rest", said Naib Nazim Nasreen Jalil while talking to Business Recorder.
"Out of 95 only four hoardings were fallen in areas controlled by the city government, which caused no human casualty", the naib nazim said. She urged media to ask other agencies, including Cantonment Boards, Karachi Port Trust, Pakistan Railways, Pakistan International Airways and others for human and property damage in their respective area jurisdictions.
She said that compensation for the families of rain victims was under consideration and the government was providing ration to the rain effectees. On the rain-related problems, she said City Nazim Syed Mustafa Kamal was taking personal interest in the relief work. For example, on complain from Natha Khan Goth, Shahra-e-Faisal he himself visited the point and get the relief work done.
The devastating rainy season so far has left hundreds of people dead, almost the same number injured with their homes destroyed and the flow of traffic paralysed for hours. CDGK had resolutely devised a "Rain and Flood Management Plan 2007" worth million of rupees to ensure "safety of people and property" during the monsoon season.
The entire management hierarchy of CDGK appeared to be failed as rainwater was observed standing on almost all the important thoroughfares with trees lying on roads across the city and electric wires snipped in some places.
Rainwater was witnessed standing at different places, including MA Jinnah Road, Marry Weather Tower, Shahra-e-Liaquat, Guru Mandir, Shahra-e-Faisal, Gulestan-e-Jauhar, Metric Board Office Chaurangi, Aesha Manzil Chaurangi, Sohrab Goth and Liaquatabad II. The three underpasses built on the signal-free corridor in North Nazimabad were reportedly closed for traffic on late Monday after they were flooded with rainwater. While trees were seen lying untouched in Patel Para, Federal B Area, Nursery, MA Jinnah Road and Dastagir near T Ground.
Incidents of wire snipping were also reported from different places prominent among which was in Jafar Tayyar Society where the people remained restricted to their homes waiting for engineers from Karachi Electric Supply Corporation (KESC) to fix up wires. Although, CDGK had claimed to deploy almost 2000 workers and machinery worth thousands of rupees across the city to deal with any untoward situation, no remedial work was observed on the roads after consecutive spell of rains.
Moreover, the mud-producing ditches-like big holes across the metropolis, particularly from Guru Mandir to Hasan Squaire, made the roads slippery, which the motorcycle riders said was causing mishaps. The city government had established a "Command Control Room" connected with its network comprising Emergency Centers in 18 towns, KESC, KWSB, PTCL and Sui Gas to provide round the clock services to face any disaster. But looking at a dismal situation on ground the Control Room seems unable to justify the purpose of its establishment. In addition to this, CDGK's new machinery of 750 million rupees and 18 de-watering pumps (or sucks pumps), which were given to the town municipal administrations, were also appeared useless as rainwater pooled most of thoroughfares in the city.