Nullah Leh dredging to finish before monsoon

Rawalpindi : On the directions of Commissioner Rawalpindi Division, the Water and Sanitation Agency (Wasa) started dredging of Nullah Leh here on Wednesday.

Commissioner Rawalpindi Division Syed Gulzar Hussain Shah has formed monitoring teams. Director Local Government and Community Development Amna Rafiq In-Charge of the monitoring teams visited Nullah Leh on Wednesday. Wasa Managing Director Raja Shaukat and other senior officials also accompanied her on the occasion.

Wasa Managing Director Raja Shaukat also briefed Commissioner Rawalpindi Division that Punjab government has provided Rs30 million for dredging of Nullah Leh. The process of dredging of Nullah Leh will be completed before the onset of monsoon, he claimed.

He said that the provincial government has released funding to dredge the nullah. Work starts from Gawalmandi Bridge and will move towards Katarian near I.J. Principal Road. Water flow under bridges will easily pass through after dredging of Leh, he said.

A survey was carried out before dredging began to identify obstructions to the flow of water in the nullah.

Wasa will utilise heavy machinery to clean Nullah Leh and all waste will be dumped in far-off areas of the city.

The Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA) Managing Director also said that we have finalised a plan to face any untoward incident during floods in the monsoon season. We have formed special teams to work in flood in monsoon season, he said. He said the most dangerous areas are Gawalmandi, Ratta Amral, Dhoke Naju and Katarian.

The cleanliness work of other nullahs of the city will be carried out by Municipal Corporation Rawalpindi (MCR) and Rawalpindi Waste Management Company (RWMC). Monitoring teams will monitor the whole work.

Commissioner Rawalpindi Division Syed Gulzar Hussain Shah has directed all civic bodies to complete dredging work before the onset of the monsoon. “I will never bear any kind of irresponsibility in this work,” he warned.”

Nullah Leh is about 30 kilometres long, stretching from Islamabad to Rawalpindi. It discharges into the Soan River, near the Rawalpindi bench of the Lahore High Court.