SC directs NDMA to clean all Karachi nullahs in three months

KARACHI : The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Wednesday directed National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) to clean all Karachi nullahs and remove encroachments around them in three months. Gulzar Ahmed and comprising Justice Faisal Arab and Justice Ijazul Ahsan, heard the case of illegal encroachments on drains at the SC Karachi registry. As the hearing went underway, CJP Gulzar inquired Commissioner Karachi Iftikhar Shallwani about the ongoing drive to clean the city’s stormwater drains. The Karachi commissioner informed the court that NDMA has cleaned the city’s three main nullahs. “There are 38 big and 514 small drains in Karachi.” At which, the CJP Gulzar questioned why NDMA hasn’t completed cleaning work of other Karachi drains  “This was the responsibility of Sindh government to clean Karachi’s nullahs, but the centre intervened after the provincial government failed to clean Karachi drains,” the chief justice remarked. Attorney General for Pakistan (AGP) Khalid Javed Khan told the apex court that the federal government is deliberating on different legal and constitutional options to save Karachi. “Karachi has become an orphan city at the moment. Pakistan will be destroyed if Karachi is ruined.” While expressing displeasure over the performance of the provincial government, the chief justice said that the government has ruined the city in the last 10 years and did nothing for the betterment of people. “What is the responsibly of the Sindh government if everything has to be done by Supreme Court?” the CJP remarked and further said, “SC should run Karachi Circular Railway, we should build road, remove billboards and garbage from the city. If SC has to do everything then what’s left for the government”, he questioned. The SC directed NDMA to clean all Karachi drains and remove encroachments around them in three months. The court also ordered the Sindh government to fully assist NDMA in the cleaning process and encroachments drains. It is pertinent to mention here that the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) was tasked to clean the sewerage drains in Karachi by Prime Minister Imran Khan, last month.