By Bilal Farooqi

KARACHI: Due to the sluggish work on stormwater drains from Clifton Bridge to Nehar-e-Khayyam as well as stormwater drains at Bath Island and Gulshan-e-Faisal, these projects are still in the construction phase despite having passed their estimated completion dates.

Keeping the situation in view, the writing’s on the wall for the crisis that will befall on these areas during monsoon rains, which are just around the corner.

The completion date for the stormwater drainage system from Clifton Bridge to Nehar-e-Khayyam was April 2007, while the stormwater drains project at Gulshan-e-Faisal and Bath Island was supposed to be completed by this month.

These projects, like many other stormwater drains projects being prepared around the city, were planned to be completed before the spell of monsoon rains starts, which would otherwise spell disaster for the residents and businesses in these areas. Not only would there be the usual accumulation of rainwater, but the situation would be worsened when the rainwater inundates roads, streets and trenches which were dug up for the construction of these projects. To make matters worse, the construction material of these projects would also be mixed with rainwater, forming patchy quagmires in these areas.

"For about six months, there was hardly any construction work on these stormwater drains", said Muhammad Rahimtoola, a resident of Bath Island. "Now when we can expect monsoon rains anytime now, they (the contractors) have dug up the road in front of my house…they have also broken my telephone cable in the process," he added.

"I don’t see this project being completed any time soon…they have just started digging up the place," he said.

The contractors, after digging up streets right outside the houses of residents, have not even bothered to prepare an alternative like a ramp for residents so they can leave their houses. This situation is especially troubling for the elderly or disabled, who stranded inside.

The Clifton stormwater drain project is being carried out by a Chinese firm called Sino Hydro Corporation while the project at Bath Island is contracted to a local firm by the name of Sheikh Inayatullah and Brothers. The consultancy services for both these projects have been carried out by Techno Consult International

The storm water drains projects at Clifton and Bath Island, being constructed at a cost of Rs 165 million and Rs 90 million respectively, were undertaken as a result of the disastrous situation during last year’s monsoon rains, when the entire Khayaban-e-Iqbal, otherwise known as Clifton Road, adjoining Clifton blocks and Bath Island were completely submerged in knee-high rain rainwater, after the construction of the KPT Clifton underpass – a faulty project that was completed in such haste that the authorities responsible for its construction overlooked the need for a proper drainage system, and it was completely inundated in water during rains.