HYDERABAD:
Due to the city’s limited drainage capacity, Sindh Local Government Minister Saeed Ghani has expressed concern regarding the potential challenges posed by torrential rainfall.
Ghani emphasized at a press conference on Saturday that the speed with which the government manages and removes accumulated rainwater should be used as a measure of its effectiveness.
Ghani acknowledged that while flooding can occur during heavy rains in developed nations, Sindh’s issues are exacerbated by a lack of resources. The minister acknowledged that there are issues with the Hyderabad Water and Sewerage Board Corporation (HW&SBC), despite indicating improvements, and despite the fact that the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has predicted heavy rainfall for the month, he assured that the provincial government has been preparing for rain-related challenges since May. During the meeting, HW&SBC managing director Zahid Khemtio had requested a grant of Rs240 million, citing Hyderabad’s solid waste management issues in the past.
Ghani mentioned that the Sindh Solid Waste Management Board has made progress in addressing this issue in recent years, despite the fact that many areas will remain dirty for 15 to 16 years until 2022 as a result of inadequate waste disposal.
Ghani was informed that Hyderabad has 118 drainage disposal stations, but only a few of them have backup generators, and the majority of them only use electricity from the Hyderabad Electric Supply Company (HESCO).
There are 641 people working at these stations, and 243 movable water pumps help to drain low-lying areas.
The Sindh Irrigation Minister, Jam Khan Shoro, suggested that sensitive pumping stations should receive dedicated electricity feeders from HESCO because power outages during rainfall hinder drainage operations. Additionally, he cited unplanned settlements as a significant obstacle to the drainage of rainwater.
The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), according to Deputy Commissioner Zainul Abedin Memon, has issued a warning regarding potential flash floods this month. In addition, nine major drains in Hyderabad have been desilted, according to MD Khemtio. Shoro stated that approvals for housing projects on the riverbed of the Indus River had been revoked, emphasizing that commercial activities on irrigation land are unacceptable.
