Karachi (Staff Reporter) Residents of Nazimabad have raised serious concerns over an escalating water crisis, alleging that the issue is not the result of any technical fault or natural shortage, but the outcome of a well-organized water mafia operating from within the Karachi Water & Sewerage Board (KWSB). This alleged network, they claim, has deprived hundreds of thousands of citizens of their fundamental human right to clean water.
Pakistan Sends Special Rescue Team and Relief Aid to Flood-Hit Sri Lanka
Nazimabad, Karachi’s first planned government housing scheme—designed decades ago for educated, responsible and middle-class families including officers, teachers, doctors, engineers, and civil servants—is now home to nearly 1.8 million residents across Nazimabad No. 3, 4, and 5. However, this historic locality, once envisioned as a model residential zone, is today reportedly at the mercy of an entrenched water mafia.
According to local residents, the water supply that flows from Dhabeji to Gulshan and is designated for Nazimabad is being diverted with the alleged involvement of certain KWSB officials in collaboration with the tanker mafia. Residents specifically name Tanzeer Sheikh (Senior Executive Engineer, SE), Rizwan Ahsan (Assistant Executive Engineer, AEE), Tariq (AEE), and a KWSB employee known as Zahid “Ganja” as key figures behind the alleged operation. They claim these officials prioritize hydrants and tanker operators while domestic consumers receive only a few hours of low-pressure supply.
Residents say that although water reaches the main supply line by 9:00 pm, valves for Nazimabad households are deliberately opened much later—between 1:00 am and 2:00 am—to ensure hydrants get full pressure first. Supply is reportedly shut off again by 4:00 am, leaving vast areas—Paposh Nagar, Ashraf Nagar, Chandni Chowk, Allama Iqbal Town, and Nazimabad Nos. 3, 4, and 5—struggling to meet their daily water needs.
Sources further claim that key valves at Sakhi Hassan and the Matric Board pumping station are allegedly operated at the discretion of AEE Tariq and Zahid “Ganja,” resulting in irregular and severely low-pressure supply. Despite an official schedule promising up to 12 hours of water on alternate days, many residents say they only receive the equivalent of two to three pumps of broken pressure. Meanwhile, supply from Hub Dam is allegedly delayed by 20–25 days, and gravity lines remain deliberately unrepaired—forcing citizens to rely on expensive water tankers.
Local residents assert that these officials enjoy protection from powerful and influential backers within the system, which is why no KWSB employee dares to speak out against them.
The people of Nazimabad have now appealed to Sindh Local Government Minister Syed Nasir Hussain Shah, government advisor Dr. Asim Hussain, Senator Masroor Ahsan, Karachi Mayor Barrister Murtaza Wahab, Opposition Leader in Sindh Assembly Ali Khurshidi, and elected representatives including Taha Ahmed (PS-128), Hafiz Naeem, Ahmed Saleem Siddiqui, and Farhan Chishti to take immediate notice.
Residents demand strict action against the alleged corruption network inside KWSB, a full audit of hydrants and tanker operations, financial investigations of involved officials, and the restoration of their constitutional right to clean and uninterrupted water.
Citizens warn that their patience has run out — it is time for accountability and justice.
