Pakistan is a blessed country that is facing issues of fundamental nature. Let me focus on utilities and here also confine to from which started life on the planet Earth, ie, water. Quran and Science are on one page. The month of June is very crucial as availability of water is the least in Northern Hemisphere in this month. And the holy month of Ramazan underscore the importance of food and water further. It is truer for those having plenty and passing their days as 'Roz-e-Eid' and nights as 'Shab-e-Baraats'. They get a taste of hunger and thirst during fast. For the have-nots, however, it is an entirely different story. Those having resources organise 'Lungars and Iftaris' for their kith and kin. Philanthropists among them care for the poor also which is a diktat in every religion especially Islam. Arranging 'Sehr-o-Iftar' for the poor is like 'hum khurma-o-hum swab' or in English killing two birds with one stone. There is a third form of social workers who earn swab by facilitating the needy in different ways may be in kind also but mostly in services. And those living in Zone 4 of the Islamabad the Beautiful have found a novel way of facilitating the poor youth having no water to take a bath in the scorching Ramazan and June. They have breached the main water artery of the capital city along Simly Dam Road at distribution points in cemented enclosures fitted with valves, elbows and Ts for providing connection to nearby localities. One can see a beeline of motorbikes, taxis, even cars with the rural boys from teen to in fifties enjoying the clean, cool and chlorinised gushing water from the pipeline. I noticed some people working in around the cemented enclosures, an underground many feet diametre pipeline near University Town on the first of Ramazan just five kilometres away from Murree Road, and at Athal. While coming back, the sprinkling fountains of water could be seen. The next day, it graduated to be a full-fledged 'hamams' with people taking baths at many places including Athal and University Town. Some had gone inside the structure to fully enjoy it. One can see a 'mela'-like happiness at their faces. Obviously the activity will continue until the civic authority takes some corrective action. One does not expect much from CDA as a gardener working at Quaid-i-Azam University told me that it happens every year and the pipeline is breached at many places from Bhara Kahu to Tumair near the Dam and at Kiani Road. I had seen such activity at Barri Imam Bridge on University Road in the past. One can see rainbows also when water comes out like fountains in the day. All passing-by vehicles invariably get drops on their windscreens. It is not clear if someone closes the breach at night or the precious water is wasted all the time. I waited for five days to see if CDA moves but its staff which otherwise is very vigilant in issues where palm can be greased seems not interested in this annual ritual taking place in broad-daylight at a busy road. Already cars are washed on QAU stream at Barri Imam Bridge which falls into Rawal Dam and is consumed by Rawalpindiites. All the oil, grease and pollutants are added to it by car washing activity here conducted in an organised way where there is arrangement of light, detergents etc also. The CDA staff also ignores it for obvious reasons. It is perhaps waiting for a Supreme Court suo moto action which earlier had forced QAU to install a water treatment plant near this bridge where the University's sewage line falls into the stream.
