20,306 tons of garbage lifted in two days of cleanliness drive

The Sindh government under its ‘Clean My Karachi’ campaign has lifted 20,306 tons of garbage through 1,101 trips of loaders during the first two days of the drive that started on September 21.

In a daily report submitted to Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah by Sindh Local Government Minister Syed Nasir Hussain Shah on Monday, it was said that a total of 13,181 tons of garbage was lifted by engaging 1,134 workers on Sunday while on the first day of the drive on Saturday, 7,152 tons of garbage was lifted in which 1,263 workers had participated.

The report on the inaugural day of the campaign said a total of 212 dumpers lifted 7,152 tons of garbage and dumped it at the temporary garbage transfer stations (GTS) by making 848 trips.

On Sunday, the garbage lifting work was more organised as a total of 13,181 tons of garbage was lifted through 1,253 trips. A total of 147 dumpers participated in the drive on its second day.

The largest quantity of garbage was lifted from Model Colony, which was 2,500 tons. A total of 2,200 tons of waste was lifted from Korangi, 2,000 tons from Shah Faisal Colony and 1,540 tons from Landhi. The CM urged the local government minister to make the campaign more effective and organised.

Monitoring bodies

For monitoring the garbage lifting work, Murad has also constituted an 18-member monitoring committee. For every district of Karachi, three ministers have been tasked with the monitoring the waste collection work.

District South will be monitored by provincial ministers Murtaza Wahab, Awais Qadir Shah and Special Assistant to CM Syed Riaz Ahmed. In District Central, Shehla Raza, Mir Aijaz Jakhrani and Special Assistant Rashid Rabbani will monitor the drive.

The monitoring committee for District West comprises Syed Sardar Ali Shah, Shabbir Bijarani and Special Assistant Waqar Mehdi. District East will be monitored by Ismail Rahu, Faraz Ahmed Dero and Special Assistant Qasim Naveed Qamar.

For District Korangi, Mukesh Kumar Chawla, Imtiaz Ahmed Shaikh and Jam Ikramullah Dharejo have been tasked with overseeing the cleanliness campaign. District Malir’s monitoring committee comprises Murtaza Baloch, Taimur Talpur and Special Assistant Nawab Wassan.

These monitoring committees have been told to start visiting areas where garbage is being lifted. The CM appreciated the hard work of the district administration and the District Municipal Corporations in cleaning the metropolis.

Sewer choking

Karachi Water and Sewerage Board Managing Director Asadullah Khan has reported to the CM that another 48-inch diameter sewer line on Raja Ghazanfar Ali Road behind Avari Towers was stuffed with heavy stones and boulders, as a result of which the sewer line was completely choked and severely damaged and the entire area was submerged by sewage.

The water board workers started efforts to take out stones and boulders from the sewer late on Sunday night and completed their work on Monday morning.

The CM said intentionally choking the sewers was unacceptable and such actions would not be tolerated any more. He directed the Karachi commissioner to go through CCTV recordings, identify the culprits and register criminal case against them.

Murad said if only one of the culprits was apprehended, it would lead to the arrests of the entire gang and their mastermind. “I know them. They are so-called claimants and friends of Karachi and I sure we would expose them very soon,” he said.

The CM said he had been using the term, ‘kuchra politics’, for such kind of political actors but he would not allow them to carry out their nefarious designs any further. “The people of this city know them very well and now them being exposure would bring a permanent end to their politics,” he said.

Murad also directed Additional IG Karachi Ghulam Nabi Memon to assign the police force to keep an eye on the elements involved in choking the gutters and arrest them.