KARACHI, Dec 20 (APP): Under Prime Minister Imran Khan’s vision for the uplift of Karachi, the much needed 50 fire tenders and two water bowsers are being provided for the port city, which has witnessed horrific fires that have claimed hundreds of lives and losses running in billions.
“Thank You PM @ImranKhanPTI for this gift to KHI!,” Federal Minister for Maritime Affairs Ali Haider Zaidi said in a tweet on Sunday.
The fire tenders are much needed for Karachi. The city with a population of over 20 million has only 14 fire tenders, which are functional while over 30 were dysfunctional.
50 State of the Art Fire Tenders of 7000 liters of water & foam capacity + 2 Water Bowsers loaded on a ship & on their way to KHI.
Thank You PM @ImranKhanPTI for this gift to KHI! pic.twitter.com/kwFHymGoqn— Ali Haider Zaidi (@AliHZaidiPTI) December 20, 2020
The prime minister on September 6 had unveiled a historic”financial package” worth Rs 1.1 trillion for Karachi’s transformation. On the occasion he had promised that he would address the chronic municipal and infrastructure issues of the mega city.
On November 26, the Sindh High Court had expressed serious concern over 30 dysfunctional fire tenders in the city and observed that it was alarming that the city of over 20 million had only 14 fire tenders.
Hearing a petition on the implementation of the safety by-laws under the Building Code of Pakistan, a division bench of the SHC headed by Justice Mohammad Ali Mazhar asked the chief fire officer of the Fire Brigade Department about the working condition of the fire tenders.
The chief fire officer submitted that there were 22 fire stations in the city, with only 14 fire tenders in working condition. Some 30 fire tenders had been out of order for the last six months and not yet sent for maintenance, he said.
The responsibility of maintaining fire tenders lies with the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation.
According to news reports, the high court issued a notice to the KMC commissioner and directed the corporation to initiate the maintenance work of the 30 out-of-order fire tenders.
Report by Rafia Haider
