Environmental disorder: SC bans quarrying, stone crushing at Margallas

Allows legal stone crushing outside buffer zones

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Wednesday banned quarrying and stone crushing at the national park and buffer zones, established by the Punjab government, at Margalla Hills.

The court however allowed legal stone crushing outside the buffer zones.

Punjab Mines Director-General Raja Khurram has been directed to stop illegal mining in these areas.

Punjab Assistant Advocate General (AAG) Muddasir Khalid Abbasi told the court that lease of six stone crushing factories had expired two years ago but they took stay order from the civil courts and continued mining.

He said that the Punjab government had decided not to grant mining lease to these factories.

Chief Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali, heading a two-judge bench, which heard suo motu regarding blasting and crushing of Margalla Hills, said in many areas where lease had expired in 2010 or 2011, mining was still going on.

He said not only those companies, but no one should be given mining lease of Margalla Hills.

Khurram said that thousands of people were associated with the trade of stone crushing and quarrying and the sector also contributed to the national exchequer.

He said that the provincial government had established 53 blocks outside the buffer zone at Margalla Hills.

The director-general said the activities in 53 blocks would not affect the national park and the Margalla Hills, adding the lease for crushing or quarrying would be given only in the blocks.

The blocks cover an area of 850 acres.

He further said: “We have also stopped the illegal mining.”

Khurram said the stone of Margalla Hills and Sargodha Hills would be used in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project and the construction of bridges and roads.

Justice Jamali said they were not in favour of rendering people jobless, and to ban stone crushing completely as stones from Margalla Hills would be used in the CPEC and other important national projects.

He, however, said the Taxila mountains had been destroyed by cutting them.

Earlier, the Punjab AAG informed court that the order of the apex court did not relate to the province of Punjab as major portion of the national park fell in the jurisdiction of the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) and only five per cent of its area was in Rawalpindi.

He said they had divided Margalla Hills in three areas; first was the national park, second the ICT and the third was the buffer zone.

Abbasi said the Punjab government had banned the mining inside the buffer zone. He further submitted that the provincial government had also initiated the process to recover the fine of more than 3.5 billion rupees from those involved in illegal quarrying and mining in the province since 2009.

The hearing was adjourned till Friday.

The Punjab government has submitted a report, wherein it is told that in order to implement July 30, 2009 order of the chief minister, 229 FIRs have been registered under rule 174 of the Punjab Mining Concession Rules 2002 against 1,250 persons involved in illegal excavation of limestone from Margalla Hills.

The report says that the Punjab government will take all possible steps to eliminate the illegal mining and crushing of limestone from the Margalla Hills in Taxila Tehsil.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 4^th, 2016.