Karachi’s huge population at severe risk

Pakistan’s largest city of Karachi sent yet another warning on Thursday (March 5) that the city may witness a horrific situation some day if the practice of constructing substandard multistorey buildings continues unabated in the city.
Most of the buildings stand with weak foundations may collapse if God forbids the city is hit by tremors. The city is already put in B2 Category after 2005 earthquake in Pakistan in which over 5000 people lost their lives.
This time in the city, a ground plus five storey building collapsed in the city’s Golimar area and thus snatched 27 lives and injured over 50 people. It was a only a month earlier, another building in city’s oldest area of Lyari developed cracks. The city has a number of such incidents of collapses but they fall on deaf ears of the authorities albeit hollow announcements of any action.
Why these buildings are collapsing and what is at the center of the issue? “Public ignorance, responds an experienced engineer, Al Kazim Mansoor who runs a reputed ‘Soilmats Engineers’ firm based in Karachi.
Karachi is the sea of multistory buildings as the city has encroached upon spaces not only horizontally but also vertically so that the pressure of burgeoning population is dealt with. This situation has given rise to a huge construction activity in both the settled areas as well as the Katchi aabadis (unsettled areas or slums).
The people including builders get building designs prepared properly and thus passed, Engineer Mansoor says. If they properly followed the design is an issue which must be looked into. If the design is not followed properly from engineering point of view, the building would be faulty.
Also, he believes the quality of construction material and the ratios which ought to be followed strictly are also not maintained. How can a multistory building with such practice sustain on a 60 yards plot?
Engineer Mansoor says the situation in cantonment areas is worse than the areas which fall in the limits of the Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA). He cites examples of area like Delhi Colony and PNT Colony where high-rises like buildings are mounted on small plots in huge numbers.
But only passing design is not enough. The rest of the process of the construction is also equally important and it remains the responsibility of regulating authorities. “There is no regulation and the result is buildings are collapsing,” says yet another senior engineer who has a vast experience in construction industry.
The regulators are not working and thus design of the buildings are not looked into properly neither the columns nor other requirements. Thus, overstressing increases if the foundation of the building is weak, he says.
He claims the situation in Karachi was not so bad during late 1990s and early 2000 and it was after the establishment of SBCA the situation started turning worse.
Although, the provincial governments have been claiming to take strict measures to discourage illegal practice of allowing the construction of substandard buildings in Karachi, the situation on the ground remains the same.
Senior engineers in the city of which many run their companies are abreast of the situation. Some say even those in the power corridors including the chief minister who is also a civil engineer are well aware of the situation.
If it is so then what keeps them calm? Thank God that the land of Karachi is good otherwise the situation would be devastating, says Engineers Mansoor.
But there are many who fear the situation may be much worse because of over-exploitation of ground water in the city. Since ground water is being extracted in huge quantity the under erosion of seas continues and it affects the foundations of the buildings.
Al Kazim Mansoor and others do agree with this notion to a great extent. But one says it varies and depends upon the ground water table and thus affects also vary. In sum, it is an issue which must be addressed properly.
In case of overlooking the ongoing practice, there is a concensus among the engineering community that the buildings will continue to collapse and swallow human lives and Karachi’s huge population is at severe risk in case of any tremors