Oil firms and social development

The Supreme Court (SC) has certainly, from time to time, brought to our notice issues that have rarely come under the public gaze. Hearing a case brought by the lawyers of Sanghar against oil exploration companies for failing to spend money on the social sector, as they were meant to do under rules laid down for them, the apex court has ordered the oil companies to pay $1,300,000 to it. This was the amount they should have spent on developing healthcare, education and other welfare schemes in the districts where they worked, as a kind of pay-off for the pollution they caused. The three-member SC bench, headed by the chief justice, noted that this had not happened mainly due to very poor monitoring by the authorities concerned. The Director General, Petroleum told the court the amount was still lying with the oil companies and had not been handed over by them. The Court was also told each company was bound to spend $30,000 annually on development. Currently, around 80,000 barrels of crude oil are produced in the country each year. There are nine companies working in Sanghar district alone, which should be handing over $270,000 annually for development. This, of course, has not happened, with the matter apparently not taken note of at any time in the past.

Now that the court has taken note, it will be fascinating to see what comes of this petition. While the idea of paying for pollution is in itself somewhat controversial, there can be no doubt that the companies causing environmental damages need to do something to make up for it. It is also true the areas they work in desperately need development and the money that should have come in for this has been held back for far too long. It is high time that it is made available so that the needs of the local people can be met especially since their region is considerably underdeveloped and poor. This important petition should have been moved a long time ago. The fact that it has happened now and that the SC has acted is something to be welcomed.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 14^th, 2013.

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