SHC orders inspection of water connection being provided to private hospital

The Sindh High Court has directed its Nazir to carry out an inspection of a water connection being provided to a private hospital in North Nazimabad.

The direction came on a petition filed by Khurrum Fiazuddin and others against the allocation of an allegedly illegal water supply line to the private hospital and a shortage of water for the residents of blocks A, B and F of the neighbourhood.

The counsel for Ziauddin Hospital filed a counter affidavit denying the allegations of the petitioner with regard to the allocation of an illegal water connection from the KWSB.

He submitted that the hospital has exercised its fundamental right to get water to meet its requirements through the prescribed procedure and paid the requisite amount to the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board. He submitted that there was no illegality in the application or grant of the water connection, and requested the court to dismiss the petition.

He submitted that he has no objection if the court appoints the Nazir of the court as commissioner to carry out an inspection of the water line being provided to the hospital.

The KWSB counsel sought time to file comments on the petition, whereas the superintending engineer and other officials of the KWSB also sought time to bring the relevant record of the subject connections.

A division bench headed by Justice Aqeel Ahmed Abbasi directed the Nazir of the court to carry out an inspection of the site in the presence of all parties and submit a report on September 15.

The court also extended the interim order directing the KWSB and others to maintain the status quo with regard to the allocation of the water supply line to the hospital.

The petitioners alleged that the KWSB had approved another water supply line for Ziauddin Hospital, which they claimed already had two illegal connections of soft water, while the residents of blocks A, B and F had been facing an acute water shortage due to the unavailability of the commodity. They claimed that the hospital is also going to take an illegal four-inch connection from the main 48-inch pipeline in collusion with the KWSB and the local administration solely for commercial purposes.

They said the hospital is some 1.5 kilometres away from the main pipeline, but instead of getting a connection from a nearby pipeline, they are disturbing the main water pumping station line of the North Nazimabad and Nazimabad areas.

The petitioners’ counsel said that there is no provision under the law that a private individual can be granted a direct connection from the main 48-inch pipeline that is meant to supply water through the pumping station meant for several connections to be given to various blocks.