Constitutional Bench takes up Khanpur Dam pollution case

The Supreme Court has issued a notice to the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) advocate general in a suo motu case concerning the supply of contaminated water from Khanpur Dam.

During the hearing of the case, Water and Power Development Authority's (WAPDA) counsel, Hasan Raza, informed a constitutional bench (CB) of the Supreme Court that Khanpur Dam is the sole source of water for around five million people.

"However, pollution at the dam has increased due to the rising number of boats operating in the reservoir," he told the bench led by Justice Amin-ud-Din Khan.

According to the counsel, previously only 20 boats operated on the dam but their number has now reached 326 while six recreational resorts have also been established along the reservoir.

Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail remarked that since the PHA Department also exists, there should be a defined policy regarding this matter. Justice Shakeel Ahmad observed that the dam administration has the authority to ban motorboats, which are the apparent cause of the contamination.

Justice Aamer Farooq inquired how these boats were being operated without proper authorization.

The WAPDA lawyer said a petition had been filed before a magistrate, but the situation worsened after Khanpur was granted the status of tehsil. When Justice Amin-ud-Din Khan asked about an alternative solution, the WAPDA counsel suggested that the use of electric boats could help eliminate pollution.

The court subsequently adjourned the hearing indefinitely. The Khanpur Dam is located on the Haro River in Khanpur tehsil of Haripur district of the K-P, about 50 km from Islamabad.

It forms Khanpur Lake, a reservoir that supplies drinking water to Islamabad and Rawalpindi.