Light at the end of the tunnel
Aghast at thought of Sheikh Zayed-style road cutting through Margalla Hill, Islamabad’s civil society banded together.
The writer is an award-winning environmental journalist. She holds an MA in Environment and Development from SOAS in London
Why build a tunnel through a national park that gives your capital city not only a natural landscape in which to trek and hike, but also acts as its lungs? Why do we want to turn Islamabad (built over five major seismic fault lines) into another Dubai with huge shopping malls, dozens of flyovers and unnecessary tunnels? Is that the vision of our policymakers? Well, the Dubai model is not only ugly, it is also unsustainable and it is time that we took a stand and that is exactly what a dedicated group of Islamabad’s citizens did by taking the proposed tunnel project through the Margalla Hills National Park to the Supreme Court.
Terming the digging of the tunnel in the Margalla Hills a sheer violation of the law, since they are legislatively a protected area, PML-Q leader Senator Mushahid Hussain appealed to the chief justice to take suo-motu notice of the matter and bar the government from undertaking this project. Last week, the Supreme Court did exactly that, making the decision in less than 45 minutes to squash the project that aspired to connect the federal capital with Haripur district.
The three-member bench, headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, asked the government’s representatives, mostly lower staff from the Capital Development Authority and the National Highway Authority, details about the project, which they were still unable to give, having provided ambiguous answers in the earlier hearing. Apparently, the tunnel project was announced on August 23 at a meeting presided over by none other than Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, where it was decided that the project would be initiated to link Islamabad with Haripur. The traders and shopkeepers of Haripur were, of course, delighted with the decision.
Aghast at the thought of a Sheikh Zayed-style road cutting through the Margalla Hills, Islamabad’s civil society banded together under the leadership of the Margalla Hills Society led by the veteran civil servant, Roedad Khan. Given his contacts in government circles, Roedad Khan was convinced that the project woud go ahead unless something was done to stop it. Environmentalists and activists met at the Kuch Khaas centre located opposite the national park to chalk out a plan of action, including a protest walk and mobilising the media. A steering committee of around half a dozen citizens decided to pursue the case at the Supreme Court, showing up at all the court hearings and insisting that the proposed tunnel would merely shave off 10 to 15 minutes from the current road that connects Islamabad to Haripur (all one really needs to do is to improve the infrastructure of the existing road).
On October 25, the Supreme Court ordered the Margalla Tunnel Project to be stopped and halted any construction and digging in the hills. Christina Afridi, one of the members of the steering committee who attended the court hearings, texted all those who had worked together: “Thanks to the Supreme Court and thanks to our supporters (who struggled) for the protection and preservation of Margalla Hills National Park. Mubarak to all of us!” It was indeed a great victory for environmentalists and nature lovers and all those who reject the surreal ‘Dubai model’ of development. The ostentatious city of Dubai, with its oil-guzzling desalination plants and bizarre ski slopes in the desert, is not exactly a model for a greener future.
As Bilal Haq, another committee member, pointed out: “What I learnt that day at the Supreme Court is that there is no need to be so apathetic in this country — if you want to change things you can, you just need to put in the effort to make a difference”. It was a good example of civil society getting together to take a leadership role in safeguarding the environment. The media also played an important role by highlighting the issue and building up public pressure. Who says democracy doesn’t work in Pakistan?
Published in The Express Tribune, November 6th, 2013.
Terming the digging of the tunnel in the Margalla Hills a sheer violation of the law, since they are legislatively a protected area, PML-Q leader Senator Mushahid Hussain appealed to the chief justice to take suo-motu notice of the matter and bar the government from undertaking this project. Last week, the Supreme Court did exactly that, making the decision in less than 45 minutes to squash the project that aspired to connect the federal capital with Haripur district.
The three-member bench, headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, asked the government’s representatives, mostly lower staff from the Capital Development Authority and the National Highway Authority, details about the project, which they were still unable to give, having provided ambiguous answers in the earlier hearing. Apparently, the tunnel project was announced on August 23 at a meeting presided over by none other than Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, where it was decided that the project would be initiated to link Islamabad with Haripur. The traders and shopkeepers of Haripur were, of course, delighted with the decision.
Aghast at the thought of a Sheikh Zayed-style road cutting through the Margalla Hills, Islamabad’s civil society banded together under the leadership of the Margalla Hills Society led by the veteran civil servant, Roedad Khan. Given his contacts in government circles, Roedad Khan was convinced that the project woud go ahead unless something was done to stop it. Environmentalists and activists met at the Kuch Khaas centre located opposite the national park to chalk out a plan of action, including a protest walk and mobilising the media. A steering committee of around half a dozen citizens decided to pursue the case at the Supreme Court, showing up at all the court hearings and insisting that the proposed tunnel would merely shave off 10 to 15 minutes from the current road that connects Islamabad to Haripur (all one really needs to do is to improve the infrastructure of the existing road).
On October 25, the Supreme Court ordered the Margalla Tunnel Project to be stopped and halted any construction and digging in the hills. Christina Afridi, one of the members of the steering committee who attended the court hearings, texted all those who had worked together: “Thanks to the Supreme Court and thanks to our supporters (who struggled) for the protection and preservation of Margalla Hills National Park. Mubarak to all of us!” It was indeed a great victory for environmentalists and nature lovers and all those who reject the surreal ‘Dubai model’ of development. The ostentatious city of Dubai, with its oil-guzzling desalination plants and bizarre ski slopes in the desert, is not exactly a model for a greener future.
As Bilal Haq, another committee member, pointed out: “What I learnt that day at the Supreme Court is that there is no need to be so apathetic in this country — if you want to change things you can, you just need to put in the effort to make a difference”. It was a good example of civil society getting together to take a leadership role in safeguarding the environment. The media also played an important role by highlighting the issue and building up public pressure. Who says democracy doesn’t work in Pakistan?
Published in The Express Tribune, November 6th, 2013.