Editor in Chief: Moh. Reza Huwaida Friday, March 29th, 2024

The Problems of Our City

Kabul has been called as the most polluted capital in the world, as it is. Recent studies show that more people die because of pollution than terrorist attacks. It's indeed killing people like a silent-cancer without getting any attention. There have been conferences and reports from Health and other concerned ministries, but the Government has yet failed to take measures for controlling or reducing air pollution in the capital.

Kabul Municipality has been making some improvements in the city. The fast pace of development work on road construction could be seen in all parts of the capital. This is indeed praiseworthy and the credit should go to the new Mayor of Kabul, who has brought at least some changes unlike his predecessors who were all not only accused of poor management and no development work, but also corruption cases. However, the city still needs much more from the Municipality.

One of the most important and serious problems in Kabul, after pollution and traffic mess, is the unavailability of a proper sewerage system. In the city and its outskirts, people still use the traditional old method of digging a well to dump the waste. It increases the pollution and causes serious health problems. People dig a well for the sewerage waste, while another well for water, which is used for washing purposes as well as drinking. Before the well-for-sewerage-waste tradition, people used to just drain it out of their doors into the streets and pedestrians could not pass.

The other serious problem that causes much of the traffic mess in Kabul is unavailability of parking lots and areas. Fancy building constructions are in a boom not only in commercial parts of the city, but all around, however they none of them bother to consider a parking area for each building.

And people are compelled to park their vehicles on sides of the roads, making traffic jams, causing accidents and disrupting the entire traffic flow. How could the Municipality and other concerned quarters allow these constructions without proper planning and construction rules, specially a parking area at least for each commercial building? This should be made a must for all commercial buildings in the city to make their own parking lots for vehicles.

If the Government make the usual excuse that reduction of air pollution is out of its capability, they can fix the traffic system in the city, widen roads and compel commercial buildings to make parking areas. This is a very serious problem in Kabul. Concerned authorities must take notice.