Implementation of a recently approved water supply project of Karachi Water and Sewerage Board will cause water shortage in Thatta and render over 300,000 acres of fertile land barren, according to water experts, parliamentarians, growers and nationalist leaders.

The K-IV, which envisages supply of 1200 cusecs of water per day to Karachi, in addition to the three existing schemes for supply of water to the metropolis from Keenjhar Lake, was approved recently.

Karachi Municipal Corporation has entered into an agreement with a Turkish firm on bringing about an improvement in the solid waste management system of the city, a statement said on Wednesday.

It recalled that a memorandum of understanding in this regard was signed by the two sides recently in Islamabad.

The Asian Development Bank has announced participation in its first Shariah-compliant project financing by providing assistance to two projects to build wind farms near Karachi, using two partial credit guarantees worth up to $66 million to the Islamic Development Bank.

IDB will use the assistance to finance two projects that will each produce 50MW of much-needed additional power for Pakistan and lower reliance on fossil fuels.

The wind farms will avoid greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to 136,000 tons of carbon dioxide per year.

The Municipal Commissioner Karachi, Matanat Ali Khan, has announced that as many as 800 public toilets are being constructed in all the districts of metropolis.

The Sindh Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA) has sent a letter to Fauji Fertiliser Company Energy Limited (FFCEL) to stop any activity at its windmill project that may lead to contamination of source of water that falls into Keenjhar lake – Ramsar site – as well.

EPA sources maintained that the FFCEL management had been informed that an EPA team would visit site of project and would examine Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), issued by EPA to FFCEL, whether it is being adhered to.

Pakistan plans to build two coastal nuclear power plants with a capacity of 1,000 MW each in the southern port city of Karachi to meet the future energy needs of the financial hub, according to a media report today.

“The presidency and General Headquarters are showing great interest in the projects which will have substantial allocations in the next budget,” an unnamed Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission official was quoted as saying by The News.

Sindh government has planned to introduce Bus Rapid Transit System in the province initially in Karachi in the first phase costing Rs 450 million.

This system successfully functions in 28 countries of world including Iran, Japan, Turkey, China, Malaysia and India.

After the success of Bus Rapid Transit System in Karachi, it would be extended to Hyderabad, Sukkur and other cities of province, minister for transport Akhtar Jadoon said according to an official handout on Sunday.

Karachi Electric Supply Company (KESC) is about to commission its forthcoming power plant with installed capacity of 560 mw worth $450 million in line with its commitment to enhance generation capacity. However the Utility has concerns about implementation on contractual obligations by the government to supply additional 130 MMCFD gas to the newly installed plant which is vitally important to address the nuisance of load shedding on long durations in this industrial city.

The Keenjhar Lake — the main source of water supply to Karachi and parts of Thatta district — has been receiving highly contaminated water through a storm drain for the past three days, it emerged on Wednesday.

During a visit to Jhimpir, a town in Thatta district located about 70 kilometres from Karachi, it was found that the government had not yet taken any measure to address the problem that is contaminating the country’s largest freshwater lake, which has been declared a Ramsar site and a wildlife sanctuary.

The Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources (PCRWR), in its quarterly report, has revealed that arsenic was present in seven brands of bottled water, which could cause cancer (of lungs, bladder, skin, prostrate, kidney, nose and liver), diabetes, kidney diseases, hypertension, heart diseases, birth defects and black-foot disease.

Besides this, sodium was present in five brands of bottled water, potassium in one and bacteriological contamination in three brands of bottled water.