ON Sept 3 and Sept 4, 1976, Karachi received heavy rain. It continued for hours, intermittently, in different parts of the city, causing problems to citizens, particularly commuters. Media reports said most rickshaws refused to carry passengers as the rain came down. On the other hand, taxis did accept passengers but charged extra. Apart from that, the downpour had affected quite a few roads, such as Daudpota Road in Saddar, on which craters could be seen. A big number of complaints were also filed with the Karachi Municipal Corporation’s (KMC) drainage department about choked and overflowing gutters.
Somewhat ironically, on Sept 6, it was learnt that the KMC had proposed to construct two swimming pools — one in North Nazimabad and the other in Federal B Area — besides allocating a sum of Rs200,000 for establishing a community centre in Nazimabad Block 2. This was told by a KMC official to a delegation of the Anjuman Behbood-i-Nazimabad led by journalist Qutbuddin Aziz. In a similar spirit, the corporation agreed to renovate the Paposhnagar-Nazimabad Road and to place sign-plates of roads and lanes in all of the neighbourhood and its adjoining colonies.
It was the time when a devastating flood had hit the rest of the province of Sindh. On Sept 3, Sindh’s Education Minister Pyarali Allana received relief material worth Rs121,000 collected by teachers and students of girls schools in Karachi for the flood victims. The material included 10,521 packets of food stuffs, pieces of cloth, lanterns, soaps and other articles of daily use. Speaking on the occasion, the minister said he was proud of the students who had always given an excellent response in times of crises.
On the cultural side of city life, on Sept 4, tributes were paid to the revolutionary poet Qazi Nazrul Islam — who had passed away on Aug 29 in Dhaka — for his invaluable contribution to the field of literature at a memorial meeting held by the literary committee of the Karachi Press Club (KPC). The event was presided over by the President of the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ), Minhaj Barna. A paper on the life and work of the poet written by Shahzad Manzar was read out by Ali Ahmed Khan. Other speakers highlighted the point that Qazi Nazrul Islam had dedicated his life to bringing about changes in the socioeconomic setup of the people.
Another important cultural programme took place on Aug 31 when a unique ivory piece depicting Buddha’s figure was put on display at the National Museum of Pakistan. The carved piece that dated back to the 8th century showed Buddha touching the earth, which, according to Buddhist mythology, meant that he was calling the earth to witness that he had attained enlightenment. The exhibit was an addition to an ivory mat from the Mughal period, claimed to be the largest of its kind in the world, being exhibited at the museum. Ivory is a highly fragile material that cannot withstand the rigors of time, which was why the museum was deemed fortunate by experts for putting two ivory exhibits on display.
Published in Dawn, September 1st, 2026
