Drinking water in Karachi: Urgent steps needed to mitigate effects of acute shortage: PDP

KARACHI: Pasban Democratic Party (PDP) chairman Altaf Shakoor has said that out of the box solutions are needed to mitigate the acute shortage of drinking water in Karachi.

He urged the government to construct at least 500 small water storage reservoirs to mitigate acute shortage of potable water in Karachi.

He said Karachi is facing acute shortage of potable water. Almost half of the megacity caters water needs through water tankers, which is a very costly and highly unhygienic way of water supply.

He said in monsoon season a plenty of rainwater is wasted as there are no rainwater storage facilities besides the concept of rainwater harvesting is alien to us.

He said there are more than two dozen towns in Karachi and ideally each union council should have its own water storage and supply system integrated to the KWSB main lines as well as rainwater harvesting system storages if created.

He said the basins of Lyari, Malir, Mole and other small rainwater streams are ideal for constructing hundreds of mini check dams to store rainwater during monsoon.

Altaf Shakoor said that the small hills of North Nazimabad and Orangi are ideal for both water storage and water tanks built above them would help in better supply due to gravity force.

He said in fact the master plan of Karachi envisages a big water reservoir and park over the hills near Katti Pahari, but the Sindh government has no time or interest to think about the megacity, its needs and its development.

He said construction of desalination plants run on solar power or wind energy can easily mitigate water shortage at least in the coastal areas and island villages.

Altaf Shakoor regretted that the burning problems of the megacity like water shortage, lack of proper public transport system, pathetic civic infrastructure and poor education and healthcare facilities are the matters of the least concern for our provincial and federal governments.

He suggested that if the provincial and federal governments are not interested in making new water reservoirs in Karachi, people at community level could go for experiments to make very small scale water storage facilities in their neighbourhoods on self-help basis.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022