Maafannu cemetery pump station temporarily commissioned

The damaged pump station in Maafannu cemetery has been temporarily commissioned for operations, confirmed the Ministry of Construction, Housing and Infrastructure on Saturday.

In a press statement, the ministry said that the authority inspected pump stations each time the city experiences flooding and discovered the station in the cemetery had been damaged significantly.

According to the ministry, the station was damaged due to the negligence of Male’ City Council that had been carrying out works in the cemetery. The ministry said the council authority did not factor the potential damages its ground leveling works would cause on the pump station.

The ministry further said the council authority had not discussed nor shared any information about its works at the cemetery.

“After inspecting the pump station network, it has been brought to temporary operations with the assistance of Road Development Corporation and State Electric Company Limited,” the ministry’s statement read.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Construction and Infrastructure, Dr. Abdulla Muththalib has criticized the irresponsible conduct of the City Council, which has caused a spat between him and the City’s Mayor Adam Azim.

The minister, in a post on X, said that the city council had dismantled the water storm pump stations without any announcement, which has caused rampant floods in the area. While noting this was irresponsible, the minister had said they were looking to fix the station.

In response, the mayor said that the pump station had been damaged for over five months.

Azim further noted that the public have been raising concerns about the floods, which was disrupting their day-to-day affairs.

Friday’s rainfall in Male’ City, which MET Office said, was the highest in the last 24-hour window, had caused significant flooding of the city’s streets.