Sewage flood damages SBCA property records

Sewage flood damages SBCA property records

KARACHI: Sewage water has flooded the record room at the headquarters of the Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA), damaging hundreds of land and building-related files and raising concerns over the safety of vital property records.

The affected room at the SBCA Civic Centre headquarters contains thousands of documents submitted by citizens, including approved building plans, structural drawings and other records used to verify property details.

Officials retain copies of approved residential and commercial building plans in the record room for future reference. However, sewage water reportedly entered the facility after poor maintenance and alleged negligence, submerging hundreds of files and damaging important documents.

Another important SBCA department, formerly known as Town Planning and now called Structure Planning, operates next to the affected record room. Sources said the flooding also damaged records dating back several years.

According to sources, sewage had been accumulating in the area for several days, but the maintenance department failed to resolve the issue in time, resulting in damage to critical official records.

Following a report by Express News, Additional Director General Farhan Qaiser took notice of the incident and ordered an inquiry against three officials. He directed authorities to submit a report within 24 hours and warned that officials found responsible for negligence would face suspension.

The incident has also raised questions about oversight, as the SBCA Director General’s office is located only a short distance from the affected record room. However, no immediate directives reportedly came from the DG’s office.

An SBCA spokesperson said the Director General was attending a meeting with Sindh Local Government Minister Nasir Hussain Shah regarding improvements to the authority’s one-window operation.

Citizens have expressed serious concern over the damage, saying the incident could undermine public confidence in the protection of property records. They have called on the Sindh government to take immediate steps to ensure the safety and proper preservation of such documents.