Margalla Hills ‘tunnel’: Govt’s ambiguity makes issue murkier

Supreme Court asks govt, NHA to come up with clear stance.

ISLAMABAD:

As environmental and civil society activists offer conflicting views on the proposed controversial Margalla Hills tunnel project, making it murkier, the country’s top court directed the government to come up with a clear stance on the issue.

The directive came on Tuesday in response to the federal government and the National Highway Authority’s (NHA) submissions on the issue. However, a three-judge Supreme Court bench, headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, expressed its dissatisfaction over their replies.

The court found ambiguity in the submission by NHA, asking the authority to submit a fresh reply on Wednesday and answer whether the project was under consideration.

The government will also file a fresh reply about this project, though the federation’s counsel suggested the court rely on the Capital Development Authority’s reply.

The chief justice observed that the court had disposed of the case after CDA’s reply submitted on March 29, 2012, stating that the project had been deferred for the time being. We heard this case back in 2007 and 2009 too, he added.

The judges were even more surprised when the representative of the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government expressed its ignorance regarding the project.

“It seems that Haripur is not part of the province,” Justice Jawwad S Khawaja remarked.

“The government should clear its position over the issue so that we can decide the case,” Justice Chaudhry said, adding in case the project is under consideration, we will adjudicate this matter after hearing people’s reservations.

Former bureaucrat and president of Margalla Hills Society (MHS) Roedad Khan has approached the court to declare the government’s move illegal under Article 184(3) of the Constitution, governing the protected National Park area.

Justice Khawaja observed that an application had been filed in favour of the project. We will also hear the petition and will decide the matter on merit, the judge said.

Referring to the CDA’s reply, Khan contended that the project is still under discussion to which the chief justice said, “We cannot stop someone from discussing different projects. We will only see the legality of a decision.”

Meanwhile, a panel of environmentalists and civil society activists have questioned the ‘benefits’ based on fuel savings and the requirement for and environmental impact assessment (EIA) prior to digging a tunnel through Margalla Hills.

Another plea on the tunnel

Talking to The Express Tribune, environmentalist Dr Jawwad Chishti, who has submitted a separate application with the Supreme Court, rebutting a petition filed by Dr Anisur Rehman, the chief executive of Himalayan Wildlife Foundation, describing his arguments as ‘misleading at best’.

Chishti said Dr Rehman linked the tunnel with an EIA report while “Margalla Hills is a protected area under the law, which does not provide for an assessment,” Chishti maintained.

Prior to carrying out EIA, there is a need to conduct a Social and Environment Assessment (SEA), he added. Chishti also questioned the credibility of the firm which usually conducts EIA.

He said NHA had already made it clear that the tunnel would be made part of the Pakistan-China trade corridor which means it will carry heavy traffic, intended to facilitate goods traffic between Khunjerab and Gwadar.

“This means the quantum of traffic running through the road network of Islamabad will go up manifold, for which this network is not designed,” he added.

Bilal Haque, an activist said the CDA and the government plan to make a corridor, not an isolated tunnel, through which the Karakoram Highway’s traffic will be routed via Islamabad.

The damage to the roads network, the air quality and resultant health for the residents are simply incalculable. “Why is it rocket science to people, including our experts?” he questioned.

“This additional influx of carbon and dust particles will cause irreparable loss to the environment, resulting in more asthma and cancer cases, the healthcare costs for which are incalculable,” he added.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 9^th, 2013.