KARACHI: The Supreme Courtmandated commission on water and sanitation in Sindh on Wednesday directed the managing director of the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board to replace the project director of a 65 MGD water scheme and his team as they were not paying required attention to the project.

The commission, which held proceedings on the premises of the Sindh High Court, directed the water utility chief to replace the team along with project director Zafar Palejo `who failed to deliver since long`.

The commission head, retired Justice Amir Hani Muslim, gave the direction after confronting MD KWSB with the slow progress of the project.

He, however, expressed his satis-faction over the execution of another 100 MGD water scheme observing that its working was on a fast track and the project manager was `dedicated` Order to fill KWSB vacancies Responding to a query from the commission, the KWSB chief said that the water utility had a number of vacancies.

The commission ordered him to start recruitments through competitive process by engaging reputable agencies like National Testing Service and/or Institute of Business Administration.

As for the gazetted posts, Justice Muslim asked the water utility chief to approach the Public Service Commission. `This process should immediately start without any further delay of time so that the water board is fully functional and self-sufficient in terms ofhuman resource`.

He also ordered that such process should be in conformity with the budgetary limits of the KWSB.

Warrants issued Meanwhile, the commission issued bailable warrants for the arrest of owners and representatives of as many as 15 different companies and industrial units for not attending proceedings despite issuance of notices for their personal appearance. They were directed to appear before the commission on Thursday (today).

Justice Muslim in his order also referred to a protest of employees who were transferred from Town Committee Mirpur Bathoro and Daro of District Sujawal. `What is unfortunate is that after their transfer, the salaries and pensions were being received by the parent wings which were not being trans-ferred for different reasons`.

He observed that the local government and the finance department never bothered about these issues which had direct impact on the transferred employees.

`What is most unfortunate is that the parent municipality, which was receiving the salaries of the employees and pensions of the transferred employees, pocketed that amount and utilised in some other head` The local government secretary also informed the commission that similar irregularities were also committed in Thatta.

The commission directed the local government and finance secretaries to sit together to see that all the transferred employees and/ or retired employees transferred to any other wing within local government in municipalities start getting their salaries and/or pension from the transferred municipality.