No compliance: Machines for signal-free corridor not removed

LHC had ordered that work be stopped, machinery removed.

LAHORE: The Habib Construction Services (HCS) has still to remove from Jail Road machinery brought to construct a signal-free corridor from Qurtaba Chowk (Mozang) to Liberty Chowk (Gulberg) six days after Lahore High Court (LHC) stayed the project.

The machinery is parked at Fowara Chowk and at a service lane near Shadman Chowk since March 1.

On March 6, the court had directed the Environment Protection Department (EPD) to ensure that no further work was carried out on the project. It had observed that the EPD scretary had failed to take action against the Lahore Development Authority (LDA) and the project director for violating Section 12 of the Punjab Environment Protection Act 1997 which says that no proponent of a project shall commence construction without obtaining a no-objection certificate from the Environment Protection Agency (EPA).

The HCS has also set up a camp office on the greenbelt near Fowara Chowk.

HCS head Shahid Saleem said the court had amended its March 6 verdict and allowed the machinery to stay following an application moved by the advocate general. However, he did not provide the copy of the court’s order.

“We had started work on the project before the court stayed it… It is not possible to [immediately] remove the machinery.”

Two underpasses and seven U-turns are planned under the Rs1.4 billion project. The intersections at Shadman Chowk and Fowara Chowk are to have underpasses. Other intersections along the route are to have of U-turns. These include the Eden Centre Chowk, the PIC Chowk, the Canal Road intersection, the Zafar Ali Road intersection, the Main Market Chowk and the Zahoor Elahi Chowk.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 13^th, 2015.