KARACHI - Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Khurrum Sher Zaman blasted the PPP-led Sindh government for the inadequate preparations ahead of the recent monsoon rains that hit Karachi over the past few days.

Zaman reserved special criticism for Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah and Sindh Local Government Minister Saeed Ghani for their incapability to handle the calamity facing most Karachiites during the heavy rainfalls over the last couple of days.

“Major thoroughfares In Karachi clogged since Monday due to rainfall and so the question arises, what did Sindh Local Government Minister actually get done over the weekend in terms of preparation and cleaning of storm water drains? In addition, what purpose did it serve for the Chief Minister taking a “sightseeing” tour of Karachi over the weekend?”

The PTI MPA pointed out that each time Karachi experienced heavy rainfall, the same tragedies keep repeating such as clogged roads, people being electrocuted or falling in manholes and buildings collapsing. Why have we not learned from past disasters and formulated permanent solutions, especially for Sindh Government being led by the PPP during the last 12 consecutive years?

“Not just Karachi but many districts of Sindh are suffering from the monsoon rains but sadly, PPP Co-Chairman Bilawal Zardari has hardly made any public statement on the conditions facing people here. It appears he is too busy plotting and scheming against federal government and could care less of the dismal post-rain situation in Sindh and the poor performance of his government.”

Zaman expressed his condolences and sympathies to the families of the 18 people who died during the past 2 days in Karachi, with 15 being victims of electrocution. 

“Sindh is literally drowning in rain water but where is the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA)-Sindh and the disaster plan? Sindh Government allocates Rs 850 million a year to PDMA but what are they actually doing during this calamity?”

The senior PTI leader from Karachi urged all stakeholders and levels of government to sit down and formulate permanent solutions so that rains do not wreak havoc on a megacity like Karachi, which is the economic engine of Pakistan.

“I would like to express my thanks and appreciation to Prime Minister Imran Khan for directing federal agencies to assist in relief efforts in Karachi.”

Army lauded for

rescuing grid station

Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf (PTI) Sindh President Haleem Adil Sheikh Wednesday expressed his gratitude to the Pakistan Army saying that their swift action erecting an embankment along M-9 Superhighway saved Ahsanabad grid station from being inundated in flood water.

Talking to media outside the grid station of Ahsanabad, he said that if the Pakistan army had not erected an embankment and saved this grid station, today half of the megacity Karachi would have gone deprived of electricity.

He said we were present here whole night. However, CM Sindh Murad Ali Shah or his ministers including Saeed Ghani were not seen in this flooded area. He said the floodwater near Superhighway came from the hills of nearby Balochistan and it was not related to rains in Karachi. He demanded a probe into construction of all dams of area that are built without any survey and proper designing. He said these dams were got constructed by some political leaders for their own farmlands, without getting done a survey and proper designing.

He said the people of whole Sindh including Karachi suffered because the government of Sindh failed to deliver during and after the heavy rains.

K-Electric expressed their appreciation for the timely assistance of the Pakistan Army and Pakistan Rangers, which proved critical in averting a crisis situation when floodwaters entered KE’s KDA grid station.

As a result of the untiring efforts of KE teams and the Pakistan Army over several hours, the threat has been neutralized. The KDA grid was fully re-energized at 2:00 PM and power supply to affected areas has been normalized. Pak Army and Rangers worked in tandem with KE teams to deal with the threat by building dams, digging trenches and using sandbags to divert the flow of the water and using pumps to clear the grid station.

On the other hand, Sindh Minister for Labour and Human Resources Ghulam Murtaza Baloch said that governments from 2001 to 2007 had issued abrupt and illegal NOCs to builders to establish societies on natural ways of water that has caused the current situation. He said while talking to media during his visit to Saadi Town.

He said that there was no connection between flooded water in Saadi Town and Thado Dam, while water actually came from Lut stream. He assured that he would talk to CM Sindh on the issue and would also advise him to build a big nullah from Northern by Pass and to drain it into Lyari Stream to resolve the matter on permanent basis.