Karachi: CDGK starts channelisation of Gujjar Nullah

[Naveed Yaseen]

City District Government Karachi (CDGK) has, as of Tuesday, started the channelisation of the 13.5km-long Gujjar Nullah as well as the removal of encroachments along the drain.

The project which has an estimated cost of Rs2,700 million would include the construction of a 24-foot wide service road on either side of the Nullah. Engineer Sajid Usmani has been appointed as project director for this job.

Earlier, in a meeting chaired by City Nazim, Syed Mustafa Kamal, it was decided to launch an anti-encroachment operation at Gujjar Nullah, one of the city’s main drains. The meeting was attended by DCO Karachi, Javed Hanif; Town Nazim North Nazimabad, Mumtaz Hameed; Town Nazim North Karachi, Akhtar Hussain; Town Nazim Gulberg, Javed Malik; Town Nazim Liaquatabad, Hafiz Usama Qadri; EDO Revenue, Sajjad Abbasi; and other officers.

Addressing the meeting, Kamal said that the Gujjar Nullah was now virtually blocked due to encroachments along both sides of the drain, which had left a narrow passage not sufficient enough to allow heavy de-silting machinery to Work along the Nullah. He said that after rain water failed to flow through Gujjar Nullah smoothly, the subsequent overflowing caused accumulation of water in the adjoining areas - made up of at least four towns - including underpasses.

As a consequence millions of residents of Liaquatabad, North Nazimabad, Gulberg and North Karachi Town had to face difficulties during heavy rains. “Now, in order to provide relief to the people living in these areas, it has been decided to start work on the channelisation and construction of roads on both sides of the Gujjar Nullah on preferential basis,” the city Nazim said. He also directed that work should begin in all four towns simultaneously so that the project could be completed as soon as possible.

Kamal further said that in the first phase a 24 feet wide road would be constructed on either side of the drain along with the Reinforced Cement Concrete (RCC) wall on the edges while concrete support will be provided in the second phase.

He also instructed the Revenue and Works & Services Department to chalk out a joint strategy for the anti-encroachment operation in coordination with the towns’ administrations. The city Nazim said that the channelisation of Gujjar Nullah would solve the storm water and sewage-related problems of adjoining areas while it would also give a new way at the edges for the drainage needs of the Lyari Expressway.

http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=193553