The apex civic authority of the federal capital on Monday was told to make their construction regulations transparent apart from explaining why private housing societies keep polluting the Korang nullah.
This was directed on Monday by a three-member bench of the Supreme Court (SC), headed by Justice Umar Ata Bandial and comprising of Justice Mazhar Alam Khan Miankhel and Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi as it heard a case regarding large scale encroachment on the land of the Botanical Garden and the unplanned and unregistered plazas built in the Bani Gala locality of Islamabad
During Monday’s proceedings, the court sought response from the Capital Development Authority (CDA) on the contamination of the Korang Nullah by a private housing society.
Justice Bandial remarked that housing societies should be barred from dumping their toxic, untreated effluents into the nullah. Instead, he said that they should all install sewerage treatment plants.
In this regard, Justice Bandial remarked that the installation of sewerage treatment plants must be made mandatory to obtain a non-objection certificate (NOC) for new housing societies being built.
The court remarked that sewerage treatment plants constructed in the federal capital are not working and their structures have crumbled. The stormwater drains built are also not functioning as per their design and function.
The court summoned a report from the CDA on the water quality in the Korang Nullah
Reviewing the issue of regularisation of illegal structures in Bani Gala, the court noted that the CDA should not pick favourites in the process. Rather, the court urged that the civic authority should try to make the process as transparent as possible.
It remarked that residents of the city have to face difficulties due to the negligence of the civic authority.
The court later adjourned further hearings on the case indefinitely. Last week, while hearing the case, the SC had sought a report from the Board of Revenue (BoR) regarding records it has of lands leased for the Botanical Gardens in Bani Gala.
The Additional Attorney General (AAG) had told the court that the Survey of Pakistan (SoP) could not find all the records related to the land of the garden. He added that the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) administration - the district administration which holds all land records of the federal capital - had provided some records to SoP. However, since some of the land allotted to the gardens is owned by the Punjab government, the latter had failed to provide the relevant records which the SoP needed to complete its assessment.
He further urged the court to form a high-level committee so that all the relevant officials from the different departments and jurisdictions can sit in one place and settle the matter once and for all. At this, Justice Bandial said that the court had ordered the environment ministry in this regard during the last hearing of the case.
The entire area of the Botanical Garden is not controversial, Justice Bandial remarked, adding that it was easy to determine the limits of the disputed area.
The AAG replied that the SoP has submitted two maps of the area in the past. The map submitted in 2004 showed that the gardens were spread over 725 acres, he said.
The lawyer added that the real issue was the forest land which was owned by the Punjab government and it has the relevant records. Moreover, he said that the ICT had been formed in 1981 and there could be some discrepancies in their records.
A representative of Punjab forest department Punjab told the could that they had leased 721 acres of land in this area to the Capital Development Authority (CDA).
Published in The Express Tribune, November 24th, 2020.
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