LHC for legislation to protect Murree eco-system

The Rawalpindi bench of the Lahore High Court (LHC) has directed the Rawalpindi commissioner on Tuesday to constitute a committee on an immediate basis to draft a “law on preservation, conservation, and protection of Murree hills”.

The court was hearing a case pertaining to the destruction of the ecosystem of Murree as well as its surrounding areas, including Kahuta and Kotli Sattian. At present, there is no specific legislation to protect the Murree hills from being destroyed at both the federal and the provincial levels in this regard, as per the order.

In its directives, the high court said the committee whose chairperson will be the Rawalpindi commissioner will include all the “members, experts from the relevant field and representatives of the secretaries of the relevant departments”.

The department includes the Disaster Management Department (DMD) controlled by the director-general, Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PMDA), and the Tourism Department.

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According to the LHC order, the meeting will be co-chaired by independent climate expert Ali Touqeer Sheikh and Hammad Naqi Khan, director-general of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).

“First meeting of the committee will be held on 8th of February, 2022 at 11:00 a.m.in the office of Commissioner and all the members will make sincere efforts/suggestions to draft the law on preservation, conservation and protection of the Murree hills to be called “the Murree Hills Eco-System (Preservation, Conservation and Protection) Act, 2022,” the order read.

The court also directed for the outcome of the first meeting to be submitted to the bench in writing at the next hearing.

“It is to be noted that all the important points/aspects highlighted above by Barrister Sardar Taimoor Aslam Khan and Mr. Owaiz Aziz, Advocates will also be carefully looked into by the committee during the course of the meeting and the first draft of the aforesaid proposed Act will be produced before this Court on the next date,” it ordered.

As per the court order, “...the DMD, the Authority [PMDA] and the [tourism] department may also make law/legislation and policy under the Provincial Rules. 7. It is to be noted that on intervention/directions of this Court in different cases, in the last three years, various laws (Acts, Ordinances and Policies) have been made by the legislator, after forming committees of experts from lawyers and other relevant fields, and subsequently, the said laws were also implemented by the executive.”