Police is the patron of illegal hydrants: MD KWSB

KARACHI: Managing Director of the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board (KWSB), Misbahuddin Farid on Saturday alleged that police is supporting the illegal hydrants, Geo News reported.

Addressing a press conference here at KWSB office today, Misbahuddin Farid told the reporters that illegal activities cannot occur without the facilitation of station house officer (SHO).

He further told that he has pointed out the illegal hydrants working across the city but no action has been taken so far to seize their functioning as police is the patron of such hydrants but IG Sindh’s intervention can stop such activities.

The MD KWSB continued saying that even commissioner and assistant commissioner did not provide any help against the illegal hydrants.

While answering a question regarding his resignation, he told that he withdrew his resignation on governor Sindh’s orders.

It is pertinent to mention that on Thursday, Misbahuddin Farid tendered his resignation for the second time in a year, citing unavoidable circumstances and interference in the affairs of his office. However, insiders claimed he was being pressurised to reopen some of the water hydrants that were closed by the KWSB following the high court’s orders.

Sindh Local Government Minister Agha Siraj Durrani on Friday rejected his resignation and asked to him to continue to oversee after the affairs of the water utility.

The biggest bone of contention was the Muslimabad Water Hydrant, which was closed by the KWSB in 2008 following the Sindh high Court’s Orders.

The KWSB chief was under immense pressure to reopen the hydrant, while some players in the provincial coalition government were opposing its revival.

The Sindh High Court on Friday ordered the KWSB to keep the Muslimabad Hydrant closed till the next hearing of the case on September 17, 2012. The court’s instructions provided some relief to the managing director.

Sources said MD KWSB Misbahuddin Farid had offered his resignation some eight months ago due to a row over water hydrants in the city and at that time, KWSB was managing some 19 water hydrants. After his resignation was rejected, the number of legal water hydrants swelled to 23. Currently, they said KWSB was running some 26 legal water hydrants, while the number of illegal water hydrants was over 200, of which many started operating during the tenure of Misbahuddin Farid.

Experts in the water board claimed that Karachi gets some 650 million gallons of water (mgd) to meet its domestic, commercial and industrial needs from Keenjhar Lake (550 mgd) and Hub Water Reservoir (110 mgd), but only half is supplied through the pipeline network.