PTI MNA asks Sindh govt to provide water to Clifton, Defence

To complain about the water crisis in the Defence and Clifton areas of Karachi, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) MNA Aftab Hussain Siddiqui has written a letter to Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, stating that the Karachi Water & Sewerage Board (KWSB) is a service-based consumer organisation falling under the Sindh government, and it is responsible for the delivery of potable water to the residents of Defence Housing Authority (DHA) and Cantonment Board Clifton (CBC).

In the letter written on Saturday, the MNA said that after the passage of the 18th amendment in 2010, the Sindh government was constitutionally responsible for the provision of potable water to the residents of the province.

“Here, I take this opportunity to apprise you regarding the persistent acute shortage of potable water being faced by the residents of CBC and DHA, Karachi,” said Siddiqui, who is MNA from NA-247.

He said that pursuant to a memorandum of understanding signed in 1999 between the KWSB and CBC, the water board committed to supplying 9 million gallons of water per day (MGD) to Clifton and DHA. “Whereas, currently CBC & DHA are receiving an average of 3.5 to 4 MGD water since then, which only accounts for around 35-40% of the required water quantum.”

He added that later in 2019, the KWSB had committed to enhancing water supply to 7 MGD but this promise also remained unfulfilled till date.

The PTI MNA said residents of Clifton and DHA residents had been continuously suffering shortage and disruption of water supply in spite of the fact that they lived in the most developed and revenue generating areas of District South.

He wrote that residents of Clifton and Defence believed that it was the Sindh government’s duty to ensure supply of potable water in sufficient quantity which is the basic need of every human being, he said.

“Furthermore, it is pertinent to note that CBC and DHA always pay the due water charges and taxes on time yet receive only a fraction of water share than what they are entitled to,” he said.