Rawalpindi
Like many other parts of the city, the sewerage system in Sadiqabad, Aafandi Colony and Hashtam Colony speaks high volume of the inefficiency of the concerned civic bodies , making the residents of this area to live in great hardship.
According to residents of this area led by Taj Mohammad Jan the overall state of sewerage and drainage condition in Sadiqabad, Aafandi Colony and Hashtam Colony is highly deplorable and needs immediate attention of the related bodies for improving the situation in effective manner.
They alleged that the plight of these areas is so bad that due to poor drainage and sewerage condition water overflows from gutters, small nullahs and spread all over the streets which accumulates at different points, causing bad smell and creates unhygienic conditions in the entire localities. Mosquitoes and bees hum in the accumulated filthy water, spreading infectious diseases like malaria, typhoid, diarrhoea and other dangerous diseases like hepatitis. A good number of people of these areas have been affected by numerous diseases due to unhygienic condition, the citizens alleged. The condition has become so worst that the sewerage has reached up to mosques causing great difficulty and nuisance for Namazis to offer prayers.
They castigated the staff of Albayraak for showing least interest in visiting Hashtam, Aafandi colonies and Sadiqabad and even they visit just collect garbage and wastages from dustbins which are placed at different points but never cleanup streets and roads and drains. Due to non-cleanliness of roads and streets garbage and filth remains littered all over the places creating bad impression of the whole areas.
The citizens of these areas have appealed to the higher authorities of the district government including commissioner Rawalpindi to take up the matter on serious note and direct the heads of the relevant civic bodies which also include Albayraak and Wasa for rectifying the mentioned basic problems by taking practical and effective measure on urgent basis.
However, when official spokesman of Wasa, Umar Farooq was approached in this connection, he clearly said that there is no sewerage system in the localities of Sadiqabad, Aafindi Colony or Hashtam Colony. Nullahs both big and small exist in these localities and it is not the task of Wasa to clean them. Wasa deals with the sewerage system, which does not exist in the aforementioned areas. He said that whenever Wasa receives grant from the Punjab Government, it would lay sewerage pipelines in Sadiqabad, Aafindi Colony and Hashtam Colonies. Cleaning of nullahs in these areas is the job of Rawalpindi Municipal Corporation (old TMA) which is not done, the spokesman alleged.
When Ms. Aneela, official spokesman to Albayraak was contacted to get her version she at first gave a very strange reply asking this correspondent to lodge complaint on 1139. Later on when asked to give her statement over the issue, she said that the complaint would be lodged at the concerned department and the staff would be deputed and directed to carry on their duties properly.
However, no official of Rawalpindi Municipal Corporation bothered to attend the calls despite repeated attempts when this scribe tried to get their comments on the issue. The seat of official spokesman, RMC has been lying vacant since March, 2016.
