KARACHI: Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) has urged Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to immediately release the remaining Rs40 billion required for the completion of the first phase of the long-delayed K-IV water supply project, warning that Karachi’s worsening water crisis demands urgent federal intervention.
In a letter addressed to the prime minister, JI Karachi chief Monem Zafar expressed concern over reports presented before a National Assembly committee indicating that the first phase of the K-IV project—expected to provide 260 million gallons of water per day (MGD) to Karachi—is now scheduled for completion only by December 2029.
He called on the federal government to release all outstanding funds during the current fiscal year to ensure the project is completed without further delays, while also urging the Sindh government to expedite work on the K-IV augmentation component.
Monem Zafar said the projected timeline had caused widespread concern among Karachi’s nearly 35 million residents, who continue to face an acute shortage of potable water.
Describing the situation as “deeply unfortunate,” he noted that more than half of Karachi’s population, despite living in a city that contributes over 50% of Pakistan’s national revenue, still lacks access to an adequate water supply.
According to the letter, Karachi currently requires at least 1,200 MGD of water but receives only around 550 MGD, leaving the city with less than half of its daily requirement.
The JI leader pointed out that the last major water supply scheme completed for Karachi was the K-III project during the tenure of former City Nazim Naimatullah Khan. He said that although the PC-II for the K-IV project was also prepared during the same period to address the city’s future water needs, the project remains unfinished more than 21 years later.
Monem Zafar criticised both the federal and Sindh governments for passing responsibility to each other over repeated delays, saying Karachi’s residents had become the ultimate victims of official negligence.
He also alleged that while the Sindh government failed to complete the K-IV augmentation project despite support from the World Bank, the federal government had allocated only a fraction of the required funding.
According to him, against a requirement of Rs40 billion, the federal government allocated only Rs3.2 billion for the project in the previous budget and Rs8 billion in the current fiscal year, which he said reflected a lack of seriousness in addressing Karachi’s water crisis.
Monem Zafar further said that because of the chronic water shortage, Karachiites spend billions of rupees every year on private water tankers. He argued that had the K-IV project been completed on schedule, citizens could have used the enormous sums spent on tanker water over the past two decades for essential needs such as education, healthcare, and food, instead of paying for basic water supplies.
