HYDERBAD: Justice (retd) Amir Hani Muslim, newly appointed head of the apex court-mandated commission on water quality in Sindh, visited Dhabeji, Pipri and Gharo water pumping stations in Thatta district and combined effluent treatment plant (CETP) in Kotri on Sunday and expressed dissatisfaction over the performance of the departments concerned.

Justice Hani reached CETP after visiting Dhabeji, Pipri and Gharo water pumping stations as part of his first visit as head of the commission and was displeased over the performance the treatment plant built by industries department at a huge cost to treat effluent which went into Kalri Baghar feeder that fed Keenjhar lake, the main source of water supply for Karachi.

Justice Hani was surprised to know that effluent was not being treated at the plant and was being released directly into the K.B. feeder.

“Justice Hani inspected outfall point of the CETP where effluent enters the feeder. It was in so bad a shape and gave off such foul smell that the judge expressed his utter displeasure before the managing director of the Sindh Industrial Trading Estate Ghulam Mujtaba Joyo,” said a source who accompanied the judge during the visit.

The CETP was built at a huge cost of Rs800 million and the industries department is reported to be demanding more funds to run it. The plant had been built to stop disposal of untreated wastewater of Kotri’s SITE area into KB feeder.

At one point, Justice Hani hinted at recommending the case of the plant to National Accountability Bureau and suspending MD of SITE, however, no such directive had been issued so far, said a source.

MD SITE tried to mislead the judge but deputy commissioner Jamshoro told him that the plant was not functioning earlier and it had been made functional that day. Jamshoro sessions judge also confirmed the DC’s statement and said that when he had visited the plant he did not find it functioning.

Justice Hani was scheduled to visit filter plant of Water and Sanitation Agency off Jamshoro road. He would also visit Phulelli canal which supplied water to Tando Mohammad Khan and other districts after emanating from Kotri Barrage.

THATTA: Earlier, Justice Hani made a whirlwind visit of water supply installations in the district and expressed dissatisfaction on the performance of the apparatus put in place for supplying water to Karachi.

He directed the officers concerned to improve system at Dhabeji pumping station, Gharo filter plant and water testing laboratory, which worked under Karachi Water and Sewerage Board, and ensure supply of clean water to the metropolis.

Accompanied by the petitioner advocate Shahab Osto who had moved the apex court over the issue of supply of contaminated water to Karachi and the rest of Sindh, the justice vowed to rectify the water supply system and said no further negligence would be allowed.

Mr Osto disclosed that vested interests were now usurping resources on the pretext of restoration and rehabilitation schemes. In spite of the fact that highly contaminated water was being supplied to citizens secretary of public health department had recently promoted 35 junior officers instead of taking action against them, he said.

He said that favoritism had reached its peak in public health engineering department where an engineer was holding three charges of Badin, Thatta and Sujawal districts at the same time.

He said the bureaucrats were interested only in minting money and get their palms greased. Many projects worth billions of rupees were lying useless, 17 reverse osmosis plants in Karachi were not functioning, he said.

The judge was accompanied by KWSB managing director Syed Hashim Raza Zaidi, Nafees Shaikh, Syed Jamal Mustafa, Thatta DC Mirza Nasir Baig and other officers concerned during the visit.

Published in Dawn, January 22nd, 2018