Karachi, Caretaker Chief Minister of Sindh, Justice (retd) Maqbool Baqir, has sanctioned Rs 16.8 billion for key water supply and treatment projects in Karachi, aiming to address the city’s water challenges.

According to Chief Minister Sindh, the Chief Minister directed the finance department to expedite the necessary paperwork and release the funds for these critical development schemes. The approved projects include the 65 MGD Additional Supply Scheme, TP One and TP3,10 MGD Water Supply Scheme, and other initiatives aimed at improving water supply and treatment facilities in the city. The decision was made during a meeting at the Chief Minister House, attended by Mayor Karachi Murtaza Wahab, senior government officials, and representatives from the Water Board.

Chief Minister Baqir was informed that Karachi’s sanctioned water quota is 1200 cusecs, which is supplied through the Water Board system. The 65 MGD project intends to utilize capacity from the Kenjhar Guju Canal, with Mayor Karachi confirming the availability of the right of way for the project. Although the project was initially planned to be initiated through Public-Private Partnership (PPP) mode, the Chief Minister instructed the P and D Department to approve the scheme within ten days and released 4.5 billion rupees to commence the work.

Regarding water supply to the Site Limited industrial area, the Chief Minister was briefed that its requirement is 50 MGD, but only 1.63 MGD is currently supplied. The Chief Minister directed the Water Board to improve its system, including replacing old lines and rehabilitating the Nazimabad pumping station, to increase the supply to at least 6 MGD. A budget of 2.1 billion rupees was approved for this purpose.

For the Defense Housing Authority (DHA), the Chief Minister instructed the laying of a 29 km long, 24-inch diameter pipeline from Damloti to DHA to supply 10 MGD of water. He allocated Rs 2.1 billion for this project, recognizing the acute water needs of DHA.

The S3 Project, aimed at expanding the capacity of sewage treatment plants, was also discussed. Due to high inflation, the operational scope of TP One is to be reduced from 1000 MGD to 35 MGD, and TP III from 180 MGD to 100 MGD. The Chief Minister sanctioned Rs 5 billion to initiate this project.

These initiatives reflect the Sindh government’s commitment to addressing Karachi’s longstanding water supply and treatment challenges.