Diversion of floodwaters: SC forms commission to probe dyke breaches

Four-member commission comprises of representatives from each province.

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court constituted a four-member commission on Wednesday to investigate the issue of breaching of dykes and unauthorised diversion of floodwaters during the recent floods that caused immense devastation in Balochistan.

Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry announced the names of the members of the commission while hearing a petition of Pakistan Muslim League – Quaid (PML-Q) MNA Marvi Memon, who moved the court against dyke breaches , which she had said had diverted water to Balochistan.

The commission will comprise of AK Lodhi from Sindh, Khawaja Zaheerud Din from Punjab, Azam Khan from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Fateh Muhammad from Balochistan. Meanwhile, additional registrar Supreme Court Qazi Sajid would be the co-coordinator of the commission.

The commission would assess the damages as well as the reasons due to which dykes were breached during the floods and submit its report within a month. It will also prepare suggestions regarding compensation to the people who suffered due to the diversion of floodwaters.

The court has directed all four provincial chief secretaries and other concerned officials to co-operate with the commission during their investigations and provide them all required information and record. The commission would also determine whether the safety measures taken by the administration during the floods were sufficient and if the affected people have been compensated.

During the proceedings, Marvi Memon informed the court that people in some districts of Sindh, like Jafarabad, have not yet been compensated.

The chief justice assured her that the commission will cover all aspects of this issue and will soon deliver its report, before adjourning the hearing.

On the last hearing of the case, Advocate General Sindh Yousaf Laghari expressed his reservations before the court on the name of former Chairman Wapda Shamsul Mulk in the proposed commission.

The court however observed that it has the authority to appoint anyone in the commission and is not bound to accept anyone’s objections. Nevertheless, the court omitted Shamsul Mulk from the commission.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 16^th, 2010.