Spread over an area of 54 square kilometres with a population of 1.2 million, Saddar town has thrice the number of problems as compared to the other towns, and the least number of resources. A faulty sewerage system, heavy encroachments, parking issues and the traffic nuisance are just some of the problems afflicting the town. Furthermore, the complaints made by the residents remain unaddressed to date.
Sewerage: A major issue of the town is the sewerage situation. Saddar, which is seven feet below the Lyari River, has its sewage pumped out with the help of pumping machines. There are only two main pumping stations in the town – one is the Jamila pumping station (JPS) built in 1894 while the other is at Clifton from where the sewage goes to Mehmoodabad for treatment and then to the sea. Unfortunately, the Jamila Pumping station (JPS) is too obsolete to function properly.
With the increased water consumption at specific times during the day (for example, prayer times), the load on the drains increase, because of which they overflow almost every other day.
It is because of this that residents have to take detours (which are more time-consuming than the actual route) to get to mosques. The area people also complain complain that garbage continues to pile at dumping sites as it is rarely collected and the sweepers don’t perform their duties regularly either.
Encroachments: Another major issue that the town suffers from is the illegal encroachment of pavements and roads. This problem is most acute in areas such as Empress Market, Tibet Centre and Regal Chowk.
In fact, at Empress Market, vendors on tri-cycles or with pushcarts sell different kinds of products from tooth paste and powder to the clothes and they have occupied more than half of the roads in the area.
A resident from Union Council (UC) 8 complained about the encroachments near his house, saying that “this is a residential area but the people are indulging in commercial activities here and no one is there to stop them.”
Vendors have admitted that they bribe the town staff. Thus, when the government bodies are carrying out the anti-encroachment drive, these disappear for a while taking all their push carts to the nearby areas and reappear as soon as the town staff gives them the green signal. Similarly, shopkeepers near Empress Market have admitted that the encroachers bribe the town staff.
A similar situation has developed at the Regal bus stop where food items are sold openly on footpaths but the town staff continues to ignore this rather than penalising these vendors. A few months back, Saddar town had taken strict action by removing these encroachments but these vendors have reappeared.
Overcrowding: Saddar town becomes overcrowded during the day with two million ‘outsiders’ (those who come from other towns to Saddar for purposes of business or otherwise) which is twice the size of Saddar town’s population. These people use the electricity, water and other town resources and at the end of the day, they litter and make a mess of things, revealed the Town Nazim, Muhammad Dilawar. He gave the example of North Nazimabad in this regard, saying that the town’s population is 0.8million which decreases to 0.6million in the day.
Parking: The parking problem in the town goes hand in hand with encroachments. Thousands of visitors entering Saddar town (besides traders and employers) are unable to park their vehicles here besides those who live there. Salamat Ali Khan, a resident of Burns Road, said that “I cannot park my car until the hustle and bustle comes to an end late at night,” Khan told The News.
Bus routes: Most buses, whether they come from Landhi or New Karachi, pass through Saddar town, a common route used by most transporters. One wonders why all buses must pass through Saddar, regardless of where they are coming from, and end up at Tower.
Stray dogs: One of the major issues that residents of Burns Road suffer from are the stray dogs that keep on barking the whole night and appear early in the morning when the people leave for Fajr prayers. “They not only disturb the residents of the area but also harass children,” complained one resident.