There were some defects in the RBOD project and the recent heavy rains and floods further damaged its structure, therefore the project could not be taken over – Chief Minister
Karachi
In a meeting with federal authorities on Wednesday, Sindh government refused to take over the Right Bank Outfall Drain (RBOD) for being defective. The meeting also discussed other issues that were hampering the execution of Karachi’s bulk water supply project K-IV.
Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah and Federal Minister for Water Syed Khursheed Shah in their meeting agreed to settle all the outstanding issues, including K-IV, RBOD-I & III, and Hub Canal projects amicably.
The meeting was attended by Chairman WAPDA Gen (R) Sajjad Ghani, Federal Secretary Water Resources Hassan Nasir Jami (on video link), Joint Secretary Maher Ali Shah, GM North Masood Soomro, PD K-IV Aamir Mughal and (from Sindh government) Minister Local Government Nasir Shah, Minister Irrigation Jam Khan Shoro, Chief Secretary Sohail Rajput, Chairman P&D Hassan Naqvi, Secretary Finance Sajid Jamal Abro, Secretary LG Najam Shah, Secretary Irrigation Sohail Qureshi, and other concerned officers.
K-IV: The meeting was told that the Greater Karachi Bulk Water Supply Scheme K-IV Phase-I (260 MGD) was being constructed in Districts Malir and Thatta with the objective to provide a dependable and sustainable water transmission system from its more than 100 kilometers away source of Keenjhar Lake to three reservoirs around the city to feed Karachi Water Supply and Distribution Network.
Chief Minister said that the project would enable the water supply system to meet the requirements for public, commercial, and industrial activities and it supports economic activities and poverty alleviation by ensuring the required water supplies for existing and future industries in Karachi. He added that the project has already been late, therefore it should be expedited.
Federal Minister Khursheed Shah said that his team has told him that there were land availability / ROW issues along with some court cases. At this, the CM directed the chief secretary to get all the issues of land and court cases cleared so that the work on the project could be accelerated.
The CM was told that the tender for different components of the K-IV has been awarded and work is about the start.
RBOD-I & III: The meeting was told that the WAPDA completed work on Right Bank Outfall Drain-I & III in June 2020 but the project is yet to be taken over by the Sindh government.
RBOD-I: The meeting was told that the balance work of remodeling/widening of Indus Link & construction of structures from RD 00 to 80+663 has been The remodeling of MNVD (RD 0 to RD 110) and Additional Structures from RD 110 to 220 have been completed. The RBOD Extension (MNVD) or additional structures from RD 0+000 to RD 132+600 & from RD 110 to 220 have also been done.
RBOD-III: The meeting was told that the balance work of the RBOD Extension Drain from RD 161+000 to 284+000 has been completed.
The CM said that there were some defects in the project and the current heavy rains and floods have further damaged its structure, therefore in such a state of affairs the project could not be taken over.
After thorough discussion, it was decided that a joint team of WAPDA and the Irrigation department would conduct the survey of the RBODs and submit their report for further decision.
Hub Dam: Federal Minister Syed Khursheed Shah pointed out that there were some liabilities of over Rs1 billion on account of the operation & maintenance of Hub Dam against the Sindh government. At this, the chief minister directed the local government department to reconcile the liabilities and put up the case for payment to Wapda.
The chief minister, at the conclusion of the meeting, urged Wapda authorities to expedite work on K-IV so that it could be completed by 2024. (PR)
______________
