Anwar Khan

KARACHI: Opposition in the Sindh Assembly on Saturday slammed the PPP government for its failure in providing potable water to the public during its decade-long rule in the province due to which people were compelled to drink toxic water, according to them.

Debate on the fiscal budget 2018-19 entered the sixth consecutive day but members discussed social and political issues more than the financial plan itself. The opposition members drew the ruling PPP’s attention to issues such as toxic water being supplied to the public.

PTI’s parliamentary leader Haleem Adil Sheikh raised the issue of impure water that the people of Sindh are compelled to drink every day.

He asserted that “mixing chlorine in water does not eliminate industrial hazards from water.”

Sheikh asked Sindh Chief Minister to jail those industrialists responsible for discharging hazardous chemicals into water streams. “Today people of Sindh are also drinking muddy water,” he lamented.

PTI’s MPA demanded of the government to declare backward areas of Gadap and Bin Qasim as ‘calamity hit’ areas. He taunted the government, saying what kind of governance it could ensure when it couldn’t provide pure drinking water to the public in its 10 year continuous rule. He said the RO plants in Tharparkar were also not functioning because of corruption involving billions of rupees in the RO plants scheme.

MQM’s parliamentary leader, Kanwar Naveed Jameel said that the government-run schools in many parts of Karachi do not have drinking water facilities for children.

“In Karachi, water worth around rupees 500 billion is sold every year,” he told the house, adding that the entire city is suffering from shortage of drinking water.

He warned of riots over water scarcity, if steps were not taken to address the issue.

The budget earmarks Rs 208 billion for public sector schools despite the fact that majority of children attend private academies.

Leader of the Opposition Firdous Shamim Naqvi who hails from PTI urged the government to step up efforts to improve quality of education and healthcare services to the public.

He said both parties have identical manifesto to develop the poor in the country. “Imparting education to the poor children and provide them with better healthcare facilities must remain prime objective,” he emphasised.

Naqvi said that children in Tharparkar district continue to die of starvation.

He said despite generating billions of rupees revenue to the national exchequer, Karachi unfortunately could not develop like Singapore. He stressed Karachi has to be developed on modern lines. Sindh Local Government Minister, Saeed Ghani said that the government has spent Rs192 billion in Karachi over the past 10 years. He said around 204 uplift schemes are still under way in the metropolis.

Former Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah said that the 18th Constitutional Amendment would never rollback since it protected autonomy of entire country.

He also said that the Thar coal project would help generate electric power to illumine the whole of country.

The house will meet on Sunday to pass the budget for remaining months of fiscal year 2018-19.