DSCC finds DWASA coy about some problems

Sewerage system and waste management in the Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) areas has virtually collapsed due to lack of coordination between two state-owned organisations, sources said.
A senior official in the DSCC said in many spots in the city they need help from Dhaka Water Supply and Sewerage Authority (DWASA) but despite issuing many letters there is no cooperation from their side.
He said, "In the fields where water logging and other sewerage problems happens, people blame the DSCC for battered roads but water-related problem solving is not our job."
The official said due to lack of coordination it becomes a problem for the city corporations that they can not decide where to go and from which organisations money will come for resolving problems.
According to a source in the DSCC the box culverts in the city are fully silted and even the disposal mouths in the Manda, Mughda and Trimohoni canals are almost closed due to deposition of wastes and silts.
The sources said the 70-feet canal in the Manda point where wastes are being disposed have been narrowed to 20 feet by the DWASA as a result at least 83 thousand tonnes of wastes have been silted in the under waste canals and box culverts due to slow water and waste flow.
Eng Jahangir Alam, chief engineer of the DSCC said box culverts from Matsya Bhaban area to Mughda via Malibag and in other parts are fully silted and if the problem is not solved the water logging and waste disposal situation would worsen.
He said the problems would be solved if there is a single platform under which all the service providing organisations will work coordinating with one another when required.
He said for coordination several meetings were held with the Dhaka Wasa and it is expected that some steps would be taken to work jointly.
The DSCC chief engineer said, "Our problems cannot be resolved as we do not have enough money for development works along with the current daily works and other emergency works."
According to a source in the DSCC the organisation is currently facing financial crisis as its revenue collection is not enough as per expenditures.
Eng Taqsem A. Khan, managing director of the Dhaka WASA said, "The DSCC wrote letters to us describing many problems and we have replied."
"We are individual organisations and one cannot do other's jobs", he said.