HYDERABAD: President Hyderabad Chamber of Small Traders & Small Industry (HCSTSI) Saleem Memon has expressed grave concern shortage of clean water and sewerage crisis in the city.
He said the Hyderabad Water and Sewerage Corporation has completely failed in fulfilling its basic responsibilities. He said the institution has been unable to effectively provide essential services ranging from the supply of clean drinking water to proper drainage of sewage, and the burden of this failure is being directly borne by citizens and business community.
He alleged that the current administrative structure of the corporation is ineffective and lacks transparency. Instead of operating under a structured and accountable system, the institution is being run on discretionary decisions. Employees are not being paid salaries on time, while the city is facing a severe shortage of sanitary workers. Shockingly, several sanitary workers are shown on daily wages in official records, but physically they are not visible on the ground.
He said that residents, particularly in Latifabad and Qasimabad, are compelled to hire private sanitary workers to get their drainage and cleanliness issues resolved. He said that HCSTSI had previously proposed establishing an effective mechanism through Union Council Chairmen and allocating at least four permanent sanitary workers to each Union Council so that sanitation and sewerage issues could be addressed at the local level. Unfortunately, this proposal was never implemented.
Memon emphasised that the situation has become even more painful during the holy month of Ramadan. The unavailability of clean water during Sehr and Iftar timings is causing immense hardship to citizens. Forcing fasting individuals to use contaminated and foul-smelling water is unacceptable.
The Chamber President has urged the Chief Minister of Sindh and other relevant authorities to take immediate notice, conduct a comprehensive audit of the institution, restructure its administrative framework, and seriously consider adopting a Public-Private Partnership model. He warned that if urgent and practical measures are not taken, the business community, along with the citizens, will be compelled to announce its future course of action.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026
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