Violation of law: Civic agency told to stop building grid station in park

At a public hearing, EPA and citizens ask CDA to give alternative land for the project.

ISLAMABAD:

A plan for setting up grid station inside the capital’s biggest public park hits legal snags as environmental watchdog and citizens have opposed it.

At a public hearing on Thursday, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) asked the Capital Development Authority (CDA) to ‘de-notify’ the land before allowing the Islamabad Electricity Supply Corporation (Iesco) to go ahead with the plan.

The authority had allotted 10-kanal of Fatima Jinnah Park land free of cost to the Islamabad Electricity Supply Company (Iesco) for the construction of a 78mw grid station and a transmission line.

At the hearing, capital residents criticised the CDA for ‘gifting’ the common land to the Iesco, terming it illegal and in violation of rules.

After critical appraisal of the project and in the light of concerns expressed by the citizens, EPA Director-General Dr Khurshid Khan asked the authorities to either ‘denotify’ the land from the park or weigh in on alternative options for a suitable site for the construction of the grid station or employ latest technology for producing electricity.

Khan said that the public hearing was a legal requirement to seek opinion of residents and address their concerns.

“Due process must be completed and the EPA will not be comfortable with the construction of the grid station at a public park without de-notifying it,” Khan said adding that he will personally visit the site at the F-9 Park to check the construction work that had been carried out without taking approval from the EPA.

“The violators will have to face legal action,” he assured the residents present at the hearing.

Rights defender Tahira Abdullah said that the Iesco started the construction on the project on a ‘dubious’ Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report.

She said that the park was a sensitive matter for the Islamabad residents as, according to her, men, women old and young visit the park freely and safely.

Abdullah also said that the EIA report lacked the set of exercises/steps that will be taken to mitigate environmental hazards before, during and after the construction work.

Bilal Haq, a representative of Green Islamabad, an NGO, slated the CDA and the Iesco for their ‘irresponsible attitude’ saying that of the 78MW, around 52MW will be used for commercial purposes against their claim of diverting it for domestic purposes.

He suggested that the CDA allotted an alternative land for the grid station to help overcome power shortage.

The residents were unanimous that in the light of a Supreme Court verdict, park lands and amenity plots could not be used for any other purpose.

Muhammad Bilal Khan, an environmental engineer, criticized the consultant firm which had prepared the EIA report saying it failed to present a ‘comprehensive environment management plan’ which is mandatory before starting any projects.

Earlier, Sadat Ali, a representative of the consultant firm, Project Procurement International (PPI) gave a presentation saying that the project, if executed, will fulfil the electricity needs of almost 200,000 people.

He said that of the total 78MW electricity generated from the grid station, 22MW will be provided to Centaurus Mall, 5MW to Golf Club and F-9 Club each, 30MW to Blue Area extension, 3MW to the PIMS, 4MW to G-9/4 feeder and 2MW to Abbasi Market.

He also disclosed that the Iesco has already taken possession of the land and added that a total 90 trees would be cut for the construction of the grid station.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 16^th, 2015.