Storm-Water Drains Encroachments Resurfacing, Mafia on the Move
A series of operations followed but the drive to be carried out in Mehmoodabad today was suddenly suspended
KARACHI: Urban sprawling in Karachi marred its beauty over the years but heavy encroachments on the city’s storm-water drains have put it at risk of urban flooding. The banks of over 40 natural water bodies in the metropolis have become house to many people with narrow space left for water flow.
The administration conducts operations to demolish and remove illegal settlements. However, the encroachers return every time, and the sight of the site gets similar as it was pre-drive.
Supreme Court (SC) handed over the cleanliness of storm drains to the National Disaster and Management Authority (NDMA) on August 12 this year after urban flooding in the metropolis.
The exercise continued for some days after the apex court’s orders but the drains have got clogged again.
The illegal settlements at storm drains result in obstruction in water flow while disposal of solid waste adds insult to the injury.
One such storm drain, located in the Mehmoodabad area, where illegal settlements have eaten up entire space designated for the drain.
The dredging and cleaning of the storm drains cannot be conducted due to the encroachments. The administration has to face resistance every time.
The local administration had launched an anti-encroachment drive to clear illegal establishments from storm drains on November 11.
A series of operations followed but the drive to be carried out in Mehmoodabad today was suddenly suspended.
Earlier, Karachi Land and Encroachment Senior Director Basheer Siddiqui had said that they were following the orders of the Supreme Court (SC) against encroachments.
He asserted that the storm drain in the Mehmoodabad area would be cleared of all encroachments at all costs.
He contended that the removal of illegal structures would smoothen water flow.
However, the anti-encroachment department announced to indefinitely suspend the operation in Mehmoodabad, citing inevitable legal reasons.
All related officials of the department were directed to continue anti-encroachment drives in their respective jurisdictions.
