The banks of Malir River witnessed a frenzied gold rush as hundreds of locals came to the Korangi Causeway with shovels, sieves and spades in search of shimmering particles that were rumoured to be gold. The incident happened on 11th October in Karachi of Pakistan.
Men, women and kids congregated at various locations close to the causeway in the hopes of finding the precious metal after watching social media videos of individuals digging and panning through river sand. Videos depicted people navigating through muck in the afternoon and scraping sand into pans in the kneew-deep mud.
“I saw people picking out shiny grains from the sand. Everyone believes it could be gold,” declared one person, reported The Express Tribune. Experts warned that there is still no proof that the so-called gold is genuine. “The gold content of these particles has not been established,” one metallurgical analyst expressed.
Many women and children were drawn to the sight and families joined the search which many referred to as a social media sensation as well as a treasure hunt. Meanwhile, local officials warned residents to exercise caution and avoid falling for unverified rumours that are making the rounds online.
With the crowds dispersing in the evening, the riverbanks became scattered with dug-up spots and remnants of a citywide obsession to strike it rich. Whether any gold has been found in the region has not yet been verified by authorities.
Notably, the region along the Korangi Causeway is notorious for being a landfill and hub for the pollution that comes from industrial trash.
