Bilawal Bhutto Calls for Collective Effort to Address Karachi’s Water Shortage and Terrorism

Pakistan Peoples Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has inaugurated another development project in Karachi, saying the initiative would benefit millions of residents. Addressing the ceremony, he congratulated the people of Karachi on the launch and said the project reflected continued efforts to improve facilities for the city’s population.

Bilawal said Karachi receives around 80 percent of its water through the Indus River System Authority (IRSA) and that efforts were underway to ensure additional water supplies for the city. He said Karachi continued to face water shortages and alleged that Sindh was not receiving its due share of water, while calling for measures to address the needs of the province and its largest city.

The PPP chairman also criticized the federal government over what he described as discriminatory treatment of Karachi and Sindh. He said residents of Karachi had complaints regarding electricity and gas supplies, adding that gas was produced in Sindh and, under the Constitution, the province had the first right to its use. He said Sindh was allegedly denied this right before its concerns were ridiculed.

Turning to the security situation, Bilawal said terrorism in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was affecting the entire country, including Karachi. He said Pakistan was facing attacks from the Afghan side and stressed that the country would have to work collectively to counter terrorism. He warned that if terrorism could not be controlled in KP and Balochistan, its repercussions would also be felt in Karachi.

Bilawal said the PPP wanted the government and opposition to treat terrorism as a national issue and jointly confront the threat. He said the federal government had remained in contact with the president and the PPP for one to two weeks amid a deteriorating security situation. He also claimed that the federal government had been considering imposing an emergency and governor’s rule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The PPP chairman further alleged that India was behind terrorism and attacks originating from the Afghan side, while emphasizing the need for a collective national response. He said Pakistan’s political leadership should work together to eliminate terrorism and ensure stability, arguing that developments in one province could have direct consequences for Karachi and the rest of the country.