Hyderabad:
Despite a fresh monsoon rod forecast from the meteorological department from July 15, no practical steps have yet been taken for clean storm water drains, sewage lines or gutters over Hyderabad. The most important drains passing through densely populated areas remain suffocating with waste, and broken or lack of protective walls around these drains have not been repaired – which helps to cause growing concern among citizens.
Pakistan Meteorological Department had officially warned the SINDH government about the upcoming rainy system, after which high-level meetings were held, who instructed commissioners, Deputy Commissioners and local municipal agencies to prepare for potential urban floods. A circular was also issued by the Sindh Local Government Department on July 10, which directed municipal bodies, including Hyderabad Municipal Corporation and various city municipal companies to take care measures. However, more than 48 hours have passed since the issue of the letter, and not a single department has begun on earth -level preparations.
More major drains – including the long stretch of Liaquat Colony and Sattar Shah Graveyard to MEMON Hospital Chowk and Tando Yusuf – serve as the primary outlets for wastewater from many overloaded neighborhoods. Other critical drains run through the old vegetable market and Latifabad Airport Road. All of these are now strongly clogged with waste to the extent that their original form is hardly recognizable. In some places, thick layers of waste have formed over the sinks and children can be seen going over them forgetful.
The protective walls around these drains are broken in many points. In some places, the water level in the drain is equal to the road surface, resulting in previous incidents with vehicles and children who fell in. On May 17 this year, a seven -year -old boy, Raheel Afzal, fell in an open drainage near the old vegetable market and drowned. Similarly, on June 11, two girls-10-year-old Rabeel and 8-year-old parish-in a revealed drain in the Jani Shah Mohalla area fell. Rabeel tragically lost his life.
Despite such tragedies, neither the Hyderabad administration nor the municipal company nor the respective TMAs (city municipal administrations) have initiated repairs on the damaged protective walls in these dangerous drains. The affected trade union committees also remain silent spectators, despite receiving RS 1.2 million monthly in government fellow – of which only a few are used for wages and utility bills, while the rest remain untapped for pressing societal needs as drainage maintenance. Mironically, every year, the Sindh government and local bodies have emergency meetings and announces rain preparation plans, assigned forms of rupees in the budget. In some places, superficial cleaning of drainage is performed for the sake of advertising.
The reality, however, is that not a single drainage has been thoroughly cleaned enough to make a visible difference in water flow. Allegedly, false bills are submitted in the form of drainage every year, and public funds are incorrectly used – yet any institution or bureaucrat has ever been held responsible for this recurring negligence.
