Traffic jams Sir, I want to draw the attention of the Sindh government towards traffic jams in the city during office hours. If the departments concerned want to control traffic jams, they should especially implement the law in the morning from 7am to 9am and in the evening from 5pm to 7pm.

During these periods heavy traffic should not be allowed on the roads in the city. In the era of Mr Niamatullah Khan this law was strictly implemented.

If our city administrator and the people concerned visit Karachi`s roads in the morning and evening during ofñce hours, they can understand the situation in the city and resolve the general public`s problems in this regard, which they have been facing for long. For smooth traf-fic flow the government should also take strict action against the encroachments, especially in the Liaquatabad and Saddar areas.

MOONIS SH AKIL Model Colony Health hazards Sir, Trash galore, overflowing sewerage lines, stray dogs, flies and mosquitoes aplenty, potholes in the majority of residential streets and roads that lead to accumulation of waste water that plays host toinsects causes health hazards for many. This list can be quite long. The common people have to spend money unnecessarily on doctors, hospitals and medicines.

There has been little action bythe `city governors` to alleviate the increasing problems of the people of Karachi. Spraying insecticide or filling in potholes is not enough. Will the provincial government please take notice of the deteriorating situation and do something positive promptly? MOHAMMED H ASAN Via email A suggestion Sir, I would like to suggest the easiest solution to protect doctors, journalists and the general public: the state should withdraw about 15-20,000 policemen who are posted for the protection of ministers, MNAs and MPAs and they should be advised to hire private guards as they can easilyafford private security. I am sure these policemen once free from protecting MNAs and MPAs will be enough to protect the citizens of Karachi, including doctors.

DR HASEEB ALAM North Nazimabad Not in Karachi? Sir, It seems as if the boundary of Karachi ends at the airport.

Malir, Quaidabad and Gulshan-iHadeed are apparently notpart of Karachi,because just after airport till Gulshan-i-Hadeed, all the areas are severely deprived of any attention from the city administration. The National Highway from Malir to Gulshan-iHadeed always remains a source of great pain for commuters.There are three major spots on this route which need the immediate attention of the authorities concerned. One is at Malir 15, where these days a nyoveris being constructed at a snail`s pace. To add to the miseries of common people the road is literally impassable because it is totally broken, having deep ditches, which cause huge traffic jams daily with a long queue of vehicles. Many villages of Sindh have much better roads than the National Highway at this spot. It is beyond comprehension why the government when it can spend billions of rupeesfor the construction of a flyover cannot temporarily carpet the road so that trafhe can flow smoothly.

The second neglected point is at the Quaidabad nyover.

Whenever a small ditch appearsthereisnoone whocan come and repair it. The third major spot of concern is at Faizipetrol pump just before the Steel Mill, where time and again heavy ditches are created. The situation is very alarming as a large number of heavy vehicles like trailers, containers, buses and trucks pass by carrying heavy goods.

But we always wait till an incident occurs before the authorities take notice.

We appeal to all the authorities and departments concerned to take immediate notice of this grave situation and come up with the necessary repair work at these areas. Otherwise we demand that Karachi be split into two cities so that Malir to Gulshan-i-Hadeed becomes part of a new city so that a new city government can better take care of this area.

IMR AN AHMED Malir mailbag@dawn.com