THIS is with reference to the picture (Metro South, Nov 8) featuring a bridge on Shahrah-i-Pakistan near Sohrab Goth in Karachi with ‘broken’ parapet. The city administration should know that the parapets are not broken; they have been stolen bit by bit in a systematic and calculated manner over a period of around two months.

For sure, this has been done to extract iron and other valuable materials before the very eyes of the authorities, as has happened with almost every bridge and road across the city. Having said that, these activities also create more ‘business opportunities’ for the stakeholders, like contractors and those who approve such contracts.

Dramatic disappearances of parapets, iron grills and bus stops are common across the city. A survey of all bridges, flyovers, roads and parks will reveal the theft of parapets, pedestrian bridges, lamppost lights and even poles along with their solar panels, iron grills, bus stops and sewerage covers. You name it, and you would know that it has been stolen. This ‘business’ is worth tens of millions of rupees. This cannot be the work of drug addicts looking for some petty cash.

Theft at such a mass level cannot be executed without employing all the needed gadgets, machinery, transport and labour. Emboldened by the criminal negligence of the authorities, the drug addicts and petty thieves also take away their ‘share’.

Following the publication of the said picture, the relevant authorities sprang into action and reconstructed brick-and-mortar walls on both sides of the bridge within just two days in place of the previous parapet that was made with cement and steel concrete with the main objective of preventing any vehicle from falling into the river 50 feet below in case of an accident.

The fast-paced reconstruction of the new parapet of mere cement blocks seems to have a single objective; ‘business’ through eyewash. In case of an accident, the parapet is not capable of withstanding even a single hit, and may cause serious human loss.

Moreover, most of the cement work done by various authorities in Karachi crumbles and peters out within a short span of time due to the absence of proper and supervised water curing afterwards. This negligence also helps generate fur-ther ‘business’ opportunities.

All this may look like a petty rant to those at the helm of Karachi affairs, but the vicious cycle of stealing city’s infr-astructure and then replacing it with sub-standard material is tragic, and there is no end in sight. Will those who claim to be the guardians of this forsaken city wake up and repair the infrastructure that has virtually collapsed?

Raihan A.K. Lodhi
Karachi

Published in Dawn, December 20th, 2024