Sindh Information and Local Government Minister Syed Nasir Hussain Shah has inaugurated four reverse osmosis (RO) plants in Lyari.
Syed Nasir Hussain Shah said at the inauguration ceremony that initially these RO plants would be used to supply 200,000 gallons clean drinking water daily to the residents of Lyari.
The chief of Karachi Water & Sewerage Board (KWSB) and local leaders of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) were also present on the occasion. The RO plants are situated in the areas of Maripur Road, Grid station, Chakiwara, and Peoples’ Stadium in Lyari.
Shah said that by the month of June this year, the capacity of these RO plants would be increased to one million gallons daily of treated water. He conceded the situation that availability of potable water had been the longstanding issue of Lyari.
He recalled that earlier the then president of Pakistan Asif Ali Zardari had gifted the network of RO plants for the residents of Lyari but these treatment facilities had become non-functional since 2019 due to various reasons. The Local Government Minister said the Chairman of PPP Bilawal Bhutto Zardari had issued special directives to him and to Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah to resolve all civic issues of Lyari and also to expeditiously complete development schemes in the locality.
He said that another two major RO plants of Lyari would be made functional in the next three weeks. He mentioned that the Sindh government had also been working to restore RO plants in the nearby coastal locality of Keamari.
He urged the residents to take care and assume the ownership of the newly inaugurated RO plants for their continued operation. He informed the audience that the PPP Chairman would soon inaugurate the newly reconstructed road network of Lyari.
He said the Sindh government after providing the facilities of a university, a medical college, would also build an engineering college in Lyari. He held out the commitment that the Sindh government would provide employment opportunities to the educated youth of Lyari. Water demand of Karachi goes up to 120 million gallons daily during summers as the KWSB faces a shortfall of around 500 MGD to meet this requirement.