Power glitch blamed for citywide water disruption

KARACHI: Water supply to a large part of Karachi was disrupted over the weekend after power-related faults at key pumping stations interrupted operations, affecting an estimated 50 to 60 per cent of the city, according to the Karachi Water and Sewerage Corporation (KWSC) and residents cited in reports.

KWSC officials said K-Electric carried out an unannounced shutdown at the Dhabeji pumping station on Saturday, disrupting supply to nearly half the city. Although electricity was restored after about two hours, the situation worsened early Sunday when another breakdown hit the North East Karachi (NEK) pumping station, further affecting distribution in multiple localities.

Officials said areas already operating under the weekly water rationing system were among the worst affected. Neighbourhoods scheduled to receive water on Saturday and Sunday reportedly did not get supply and will now have to wait until the next cycle. KWSC officials added that even a short interruption at Dhabeji can take 10 to 20 hours for the system to return to normal, causing delays across the wider network.

Fault at NEK station

A KWSC spokesperson said pumping resumed through 21 pumps after power was restored at Dhabeji, but full stabilisation of the system would take time. The spokesperson said the NEK pumping station breakdown took place at around 3am on May 31, partially affecting the city’s supply network.

According to KWSC, K-Electric technical teams were called in and identified a fault in the main transmission cable supplying power to the K-II pumping station. The utility said emergency arrangements were then made, including temporary backfeeding from the K-III feeder. Electricity was partially restored at around 5am, but officials said full pumping operations could not restart because of limited capacity.

KWSC said the disruption has created a shortfall of 54 million gallons per day in the city’s water supply. It warned that if the fault is not permanently repaired, water distribution schedules could face further disruption. The corporation also urged K-Electric to immediately fix the fault and ensure uninterrupted electricity to pumping stations.

Residents forced to rely on tankers

Officials and residents said supply interruptions have become a recurring problem in Karachi, while government-run hydrants continued to function. With piped water unavailable in many areas, residents have increasingly been pushed to depend on costly water tankers for daily use.

MQM-P criticises utilities

Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) sharply criticised the prolonged disruption, saying the power shutdown at Dhabeji and subsequent pipeline bursts caused by back pressure had again plunged Karachi into a severe water crisis during hot weather.

In a statement issued by its central committee, the party described the situation as "criminal negligence" by the city’s water and power utilities. It said repeated technical and power failures had suspended millions of gallons of supply and led to what it called the collapse of Karachi’s water distribution system.

The party said frequent outages at a critical installation like Dhabeji and repeated pipeline faults should not be seen as routine technical matters, but as "serious administrative failure and negligence" by K-Electric and KWSC. MQM-P also alleged that more than 40 million residents were being forced to depend on costly tanker services, while authorities had failed to curb what it called a "tanker mafia" operating during the crisis.