City Of Lights or The City of Garbage ?

By Alina Amir

Karachi is the city of lights, the city of diverse culture, the economic hub, and the trade route of Pakistan. The city, which owns people of all ethnic groups of Pakistan, has been jumbled in its piles of garbage and overflowing gutters everywhere. But why is it so? What made this city fall from the fastest growing city to the worst place to live in? Various factors like terrorism, corruption, water scarcity, poor transportation system, and the increased crime rate have worsened the overall living standards, but the most neglected part is waste management.

Specifically, Karachi has six districts and seven  cantonment  areas  under  the  control  of  two main authorities to manage waste. One is SSWMB (Sindh Solid Waste Management Board) and the other is the DMC (District Municipal Committee). Karachi produces up to 16,000 M/tons of domestic garbage on daily basis, apart from commercial  and  industrial  waste.  The  city possesses only 2 landfill sites to dispose off the waste, comprising five hundred acres of land each on the northern bypass, namely Deh Pas Gondal and Deh Jam Chakro. The daily disposal figures at landfill sites are between 7,000 and 8,000 tons. Where does the rest of the garbage go? It roams around you and me in the form of garbage heaps, dumps at the parks, and drainage canals.

Thus, it is due to the negligence and poor management of respective authorities who haven’t taken these issues seriously. According to the recent data found by 'The News', approximately 13000 workers of DMC and SSWMB are ghost employees. 

This tally has resulted in a massive surge in the garbage count in the city. Any further negligence can further add fuel to the fire of environmental woes of the city of lights. It’s high time the authorities keep a counter check and balance over their employees to stop the further worsening of the waste management system. In addition to that, citizens, due to their ignorance and lack of awareness, also add up to the waste management issues. People, having no concern for the environment, dispose of their garbage on the seashores, into the oceans, and other tourist attraction areas. They also do not keep checking and balancing their carbon footprint count and keep on polluting the air quality, degrading the environmental ebb of the city. All these factors cumulatively contribute to the city’s  crisis.  Decisively,  not  only  do  these  crises  have  a  catastrophic  effect  on  the  life  of karachiites, their health, and the environment of the city, but it also damages the city's attraction towards tourism opportunities.

Ergo, some measures ought to be taken to eliminate this problem.  The  administrative authorities should construct adequate and well-equipped landfill sites at a distance where the transportation of garbage won’t be an economic hurdle. Moreover, DMC and SSWMB should keep in check and balance their employees' performance. The authorities should also take immediate action on the burning of garbage, which causes the emission of hazardous gases. Accordingly, the waste management awareness program would also be helpful to educate the citizens. As a result, by conducting awareness camps, we could motivate them to overcome their laziness and start the essential habit of reducing, reusing, and recycling their household waste.