The Karachi city administration has held a private housing society’s builder responsible for the deaths of two children who fell into a manhole in Malir’s Memon Goth area. The tragic event occurred on Wednesday when several children stood on a manhole lid, which gave way under their weight during a Muharram sabeel gathering in Ghafoor Colony.
Two children, 10-year-old Taha Lashari and 4-year-old Hasnain, lost their lives, while three others—7-year-old Saqib, 11-year-old Parvez, and an unidentified 10-year-old—were rescued and taken to Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre in critical condition.
Residents of the private society, which lacks a proper sewage system, had dug deep wells for sewerage. This incident is part of a worrying trend, with at least 17 people having died from falling into sewer nullahs or gutters in Karachi this year alone.
Due to the suspension of cellular services by the provincial government for Muharram security, rescue organizations were unreachable, leaving residents to save the children on their own.
Memon Goth, known as a stronghold of the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party, has witnessed similar incidents in the past year and a half. Residents told Geo News that this was the third such event in that time period.
Speaking on Geo News’ program “Geo Pakistan,” Karachi Deputy Mayor Salman Abdullah Murad stated that the private society’s builder was responsible for providing proper facilities and infrastructure. He called the incident a major tragedy and visited the victims’ families to offer condolences.
The deputy mayor noted that following a previous incident in Memon Goth, police had arrested individuals for stealing manhole covers. He emphasized that citizens also bear some responsibility, urging them to report any vandalism or theft of public property to the authorities immediately.
