Filtration plant closures spark water shortage

The district administration has handed over control of all water filtration plants installed in union councils (UCs) across the city to the Punjab Saaf Pani Authority (PSPA), triggering a phased withdrawal of Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA) staff and disrupting the supply of potable water to residents. As a result, water provision from many filtration plants has been suspended, causing considerable inconvenience to citizens and traders alike. In areas under the Rawalpindi Municipal Corporation (RMC), there are 46 UCs, each hosting between seven and 11 filtration plants. Administrative control, maintenance and filter replacement responsibilities have now been transferred to the Punjab Saaf Pani Authority. However, despite the passage of two weeks, the authority has yet to deploy its own operators at the sites, leading to the temporary closure of a large number of plants and a halt in the supply of clean, filtered water. More than 60 per cent of filtration plants in the city are currently non-operational, while output at a further 40 per cent has been reduced by half. Officials warn that if staff are not deployed within the week, these remaining plants may also cease operations. Local traders, including Adam Khan and Iftikharuddin of Naya Mohalla Bazaar, said their area's filtration plant has been closed for a week. WASA personnel, they added, have informed them that responsibility now rests with the Saaf Pani Authority and operations will resume once its trained staff take over. A spokesperson for the Punjab Saaf Pani Authority, however, said that the deployment of staff has begun and that all filtration plants will become fully operational within a few days.