LHC holds PDMA, Rescue 1122 responsible

The Lahore High Court (LHC) Rawalpindi bench on Wednesday held the Rescue 1122, the highway department and the Punjab Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) responsible for the Murree tragedy that claimed the lives of at least 23 tourists earlier this year.

The court ordered legal proceedings against the responsible officials of Rescue 1122, the PDMA and the highway authority.

At least 23 people, including women and children, were found dead in their vehicles trapped in heavy snowfall in January in the hill station. The victims included eight people of the same family.

LHC Rawalpindi bench Justice Chaudhry Abdul Aziz announced the verdict reserved earlier. The court ordered to increase in compensation for the heirs of the victims.

A detailed verdict will be released on November 7.

The LHC said that all illegal buildings in Murree should be demolished, and all commercial constructions banned.

The court ordered that a mechanism should be drawn up for hotels, and rents should be fixed by creating categories to distinguish between hotels and guest houses in Murree.

The order said that Rs800,000 compensation given to the families who lost their loved ones was less and the compensation amount should be increased.

It said that a separate department responsible for the cleaning of sewerage lines and drains should be set up.

The verdict said that strict legal action should be taken against officers who were aware of the meteorological department’s report about the unprecedented snowfall.

The judgment said that no action should be taken against those who were unjustifiably suspended after the tragedy, whereas action should be taken against the officers of Rescue 1122, the highway department and the PDMA. The court declared that to avoid such tragedies in the future, parking lots should be established outside Murree city. It said that parking for all vehicles should be increased and parking capacity should be increased after complete assessment that how many vehicles enter Murree in peak seasons.

Read 'Safe tourist programme' approved for Murree

After an initial inquiry into the tragedy, former Punjab chief minister Usman Buzdar suspended 15 officials for the tragedy. They included the Rawalpindi commissioner, the deputy commissioner, the assistant commissioner and heads of departments.

Murree tragedy

At least 23 people lost their lives due to a strong blizzard that swept through the hill resort on January 9, 2022.

The initial investigation report that was made public pointed to the failure of relevant government departments in taking pre-emptive measures in light of the warnings issued by the Met Office. The probe also uncovered that measures were not taken to regulate the influx of tourists.

Verdict reserved

On May 27, the LHC had reserved its verdict in the Murree tragedy case. The high court reportedly lashed out at the Murree Development Authority (MDA) for negligence, questioning the role of the agencies when the roads of the hill station were blocked and thousands of people were stranded.

During the hearing, the lawyer said that according to the National Engineering Services Pakistan (NESPAK) Rs1.5 billion was acquired for the construction of a parking plaza in Murree.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 3^rd, 2022.