Regularisation of illegal water hydrants hailed by Pindiites

Rawalpindi : The citizens of Rawalpindi have hailed the ruling of Lahore High Court (LHC) Rawalpindi Bench regarding regularisation of all illegal water hydrants to provide water through tankers at controlled rates.
The court issued the decree in a plea filed by residents of Rawalpindi to ensure the authorities concerned to supply water to all areas of Rawalpindi without any discrimination.
It is pertinent to note that the residents of Rawalpindi are buying water tankers at skyrocketing prices between Rs3000 to Rs5000. Over 70 per cent residents of the city are relying on bore (water from wells) and water through tankers. The local management and Cantonment Board Management provide water only to 30 per cent people. They are supplying water but after one or two days interval. The illegal housing societies were also a major reason of water crisis all around the city.
The Lahore High Court (LHC), Rawalpindi Bench Justice Sohail Nasir ordered regularisation of all all illegal water hydrants and directed concerned authorities to fix the price of a water tanker. The court has also directed authorities concerned to ensure ‘tanker mafia’ to provide water in controlled rates.

Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA) report submitted in court that there are total 84 water hydrants in city. The owners of illegal water hydrants were selling water at skyrocketing prices. The residents of Rawalpindi were facing water shortfall of 17 million gallons per day. But, with the establishment of over 318 illegal housing societies, the water shortfall will increase to 35 million gallons per day. The report also disclosed that two to three million gallons water was being sold at skyrocketing prices every day.
Lahore High Court (LHC), Rawalpindi Bench Justice Sohail Nasir expressed displeasure and remarked that authorities concerned were taking a deep slumber on this situation and doing nothing to supply water to the citizens. The court remarked that there were 520 tube wells also but despite them, the residents were buying expensive water from tanker mafia.
The residents of Rawalpindi, Usman Ghani and several others filed a petition through Advocate Ilyas Saddique in LHC, Rawalpindi Bench and appealed to resolve water crisis. The residents of Rawalpindi particularly locals of Adiala Road and Chakri Road appealed to the court to direct Wasa to provide them water. The tanker mafia is taking full advantage of present water crisis during hot weather and selling a water tanker at Rs3000 to Rs5000 in different localities of the city and cantonment boards.
The tanker mafia is selling a water tanker at Rs3500 here at Shah Khalid, Shah Faisal, Gulzar-e-Quaid and Gulraiz while a water tanker is being sold at Rs3000 to Rs5000 here at Scheme-III, Adiala, Gulistan Colony and Rehmatabad.
The city is facing severe water crisis but there is no mechanism to control tanker mafia while thousands of people have been relying on them for years. In the areas of Range Road, Qasim Market, Misriyal, a tanker is being sold at Rs2500 to Rs3000.