IMC officials scapegoated over Rawal Dam’s toxic water
PM takes notice of polluted water; two officials suspended who had nothing to do with dam’s cleanliness
A representational image. PHOTO: REUTERS
ISLAMABAD:
Two officials of the metropolitan corporation of the federal capital have been suspended after the prime minister took notice of toxic water being supplied from Rawal Dam. However, it has emerged that the officials had nothing to do with the cleanliness of the water in the dam.
A report has been prepared to show the performance of the district administration but little has been done on the ground to improve the situation.
During a recent meeting of the federal cabinet, The Express Tribune learnt that one of the ministers brought up the issue of toxic water being supplied from Rawal Dam. Taking notice of the matter, Prime Minister Imran Khan directed the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) administration to take immediate action in this regard.
The ICTA, instead of informing the prime minister that neither the Capital Development Authority (CDA), nor the Islamabad Metropolitan Corporation (IMC) were responsible for the cleanliness of the dam’s waters, piled pressure on the IMC to suspend officers.
Subsequently, the IMC Chief Metropolitan Officer Humayun Akhtar ordered the suspension of Islamabad Metropolitan Corporation (IMC) Chief Inspector Mumtaz Hussain and Chief Supervisor Usman Arif for failing to clean the waters of the lake.
With the source of pollutants in Rawal Lake still unaddressed, sources have said that the ICTA is now preparing a report detailing action taken after the PM’s notice and that the report will soon be presented before the prime minister.
The report, sources suggest, highlights that the district administration has finished cleaning the lake’s waters as per the directions of the premier under the supervision of the area magistrate.
However, The Express Tribune has learnt that the district administration has prepared the report with the job only half done as only some litter was fished out of the lake from just one corner of the reservoir and toxic water continues to be supplied to residents of Islamabad and Rawalpindi.
Akhtar, who is also the CDA Member Engineering, told The Express Tribune that the Rawal dam had been established under the Small Dams project of the Punjab government to supply water to the garrison city of Rawalpindi as part of a provincial water supply scheme.
He added that the project is still responsible for the dam and its waters, including its cleanliness. Neither the CDA, the IMC nor the ICTA was responsible for affairs for the dam, Akhtar added.
Instead of suspending officials of the IMC, he suggested that notices should have been served by the competent authority to either IMC’s sanitation department or the Rawal dam staff who responsible for overseeing operations of the dam.
If ignored, the competent authority should have repeatedly sent notices until the Rawalpindi district administration became compelled to clean the lake’s water, he suggested.
No quick fixes
IMC Environment Wing Director Irfan Niazi confirmed to The Express Tribune on contact that water in the Rawal dam is polluted. However, he added that the source of some of the pollutants were sewerage waters from the Bani Gala and Bara Kahu areas of the federal capital which empty into the lake. The former also includes the residence of the prime minister.
However, he added that there were no quick fixes to the problem.
Niazi said that a few years ago, Prime Minister Imran had himself filed a petition in the Supreme Court’s (SC) Human Rights Cell after which the court had ordered the CDA to install water treatment plants in the federal capital at the earliest.
However, the director disclosed that it will take at least another year to install a treatment plant for waters draining into the lake and that this timeline and the construction of the plant which was completely dependent on when the government provides funds for the project.
Niazi further said that there are no comprehensive cleanliness systems for either Rawal dam or its waters owing to which various toxic impurities were contaminating the water stored in the reservoir.
“The same water is being supplied to residents of Rawalpindi,” he added.
Explaining the issue, the environment official said that the first type of impurity was the mixture of sand and water which made the water undrinkable unless it is filtered. The other type was chemical, whereby dissolved impurities have to be treated in a wastewater treatment plant, he said.
Responding to a question, the director said that water in the Rawal dam cannot be declared fit for consumption owing to the vast amounts of waste dumped into it. One major source of waste dumped into the dam was the plethora of poultry farms which are located along the Korang nullah which ultimately drains into the lake.
To improve the quality of water in the reservoir, he suggested that the practice of dumping raw waste into the Korang nullah or even directly into the lake must stop immediately.
Niazi suggested that poultry farms should be barred from dumping waste in the water with strict monitoring, adding that heavy fines should be imposed and harsh punishments must be given on violation.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 20th, 2020.
Two officials of the metropolitan corporation of the federal capital have been suspended after the prime minister took notice of toxic water being supplied from Rawal Dam. However, it has emerged that the officials had nothing to do with the cleanliness of the water in the dam.
A report has been prepared to show the performance of the district administration but little has been done on the ground to improve the situation.
During a recent meeting of the federal cabinet, The Express Tribune learnt that one of the ministers brought up the issue of toxic water being supplied from Rawal Dam. Taking notice of the matter, Prime Minister Imran Khan directed the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) administration to take immediate action in this regard.
The ICTA, instead of informing the prime minister that neither the Capital Development Authority (CDA), nor the Islamabad Metropolitan Corporation (IMC) were responsible for the cleanliness of the dam’s waters, piled pressure on the IMC to suspend officers.
Subsequently, the IMC Chief Metropolitan Officer Humayun Akhtar ordered the suspension of Islamabad Metropolitan Corporation (IMC) Chief Inspector Mumtaz Hussain and Chief Supervisor Usman Arif for failing to clean the waters of the lake.
With the source of pollutants in Rawal Lake still unaddressed, sources have said that the ICTA is now preparing a report detailing action taken after the PM’s notice and that the report will soon be presented before the prime minister.
The report, sources suggest, highlights that the district administration has finished cleaning the lake’s waters as per the directions of the premier under the supervision of the area magistrate.
However, The Express Tribune has learnt that the district administration has prepared the report with the job only half done as only some litter was fished out of the lake from just one corner of the reservoir and toxic water continues to be supplied to residents of Islamabad and Rawalpindi.
Akhtar, who is also the CDA Member Engineering, told The Express Tribune that the Rawal dam had been established under the Small Dams project of the Punjab government to supply water to the garrison city of Rawalpindi as part of a provincial water supply scheme.
He added that the project is still responsible for the dam and its waters, including its cleanliness. Neither the CDA, the IMC nor the ICTA was responsible for affairs for the dam, Akhtar added.
Instead of suspending officials of the IMC, he suggested that notices should have been served by the competent authority to either IMC’s sanitation department or the Rawal dam staff who responsible for overseeing operations of the dam.
If ignored, the competent authority should have repeatedly sent notices until the Rawalpindi district administration became compelled to clean the lake’s water, he suggested.
No quick fixes
IMC Environment Wing Director Irfan Niazi confirmed to The Express Tribune on contact that water in the Rawal dam is polluted. However, he added that the source of some of the pollutants were sewerage waters from the Bani Gala and Bara Kahu areas of the federal capital which empty into the lake. The former also includes the residence of the prime minister.
However, he added that there were no quick fixes to the problem.
Niazi said that a few years ago, Prime Minister Imran had himself filed a petition in the Supreme Court’s (SC) Human Rights Cell after which the court had ordered the CDA to install water treatment plants in the federal capital at the earliest.
However, the director disclosed that it will take at least another year to install a treatment plant for waters draining into the lake and that this timeline and the construction of the plant which was completely dependent on when the government provides funds for the project.
Niazi further said that there are no comprehensive cleanliness systems for either Rawal dam or its waters owing to which various toxic impurities were contaminating the water stored in the reservoir.
“The same water is being supplied to residents of Rawalpindi,” he added.
Explaining the issue, the environment official said that the first type of impurity was the mixture of sand and water which made the water undrinkable unless it is filtered. The other type was chemical, whereby dissolved impurities have to be treated in a wastewater treatment plant, he said.
Responding to a question, the director said that water in the Rawal dam cannot be declared fit for consumption owing to the vast amounts of waste dumped into it. One major source of waste dumped into the dam was the plethora of poultry farms which are located along the Korang nullah which ultimately drains into the lake.
To improve the quality of water in the reservoir, he suggested that the practice of dumping raw waste into the Korang nullah or even directly into the lake must stop immediately.
Niazi suggested that poultry farms should be barred from dumping waste in the water with strict monitoring, adding that heavy fines should be imposed and harsh punishments must be given on violation.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 20th, 2020.