September 15, 2008	Monday	Ramazan 14, 1429

RAWALPINDI, Sept 14: Although the local governments have not fared well when it comes to providing basic amenities to the masses, it is environment issues that have confronted their total neglect.

A report of the Punjab Planning and Development Department obtained by Dawn says most local governments are in nascent stages and environment presently does not appear high on their agendas. The major urban cities of Punjab are confronted with environmental hazards like noise, air, drinking water and waste water.

The report stated that the greatest number of constraints was the lack of competent staff. At present the EPA Punjab has a staff of some 270, but only 22 are inspectors who are responsible for around 50,000 industrial units in the province. Efforts to train staff have been undermined by a vicious circle of low motivation, under-funding and poor results, with the trained staff leaving to find work elsewhere. Resources are, as ever, also short: computers have been purchased, but they are not being used productively, and records are still kept in brown paper files, obviating rapid and targeted analysis, the report points out.

The provincial EPAs are confined to provincial capitals except in the Punjab where devolution has taken place in various districts. The Punjab EPA has a lose relationship with EPA-Pakistan at the federal level. It is primarily a provincial entity rather than being a branch of EPA at the provincial level.

The city district government in Rawalpindi has the office of district officer dealing with environment matters who heads the environment department. EPA Rawalpindi is responsible to deal with matters concerning the protection of environment through the seven town municipal administrations (TMAs). These external obstacles are compounded by internal constraints.

However, it lacks competent staff like the Environment Protection Agency (EPA-Punjab) in the provincial capital. The office of the district officer has now become a centre of intrigues and infighting between supervisor and the subordinates.

The report notes that the post of district officer (environment) was already functioning before the promulgation of PLGO-2001 in Rawalpindi and Lahore under the provincial environment protection department. The only visible difference now is that it has been devolved and put under the office of the executive district officer, municipal services. The EDO takes no interest hence the office has merely become a place to get salaries without performing any job.

The office of the district officer has become a centre of intrigues and infighting between supervisor and the subordinates. The subordinates appear to have become more powerful than the supervisor resulting in absolute poor performance of the department. The office has also been turned into a partial residential place used by certain staff and their friends and relatives.

The EPA Rawalpindi office has also not a single specialised vehicle to check smoke-emitting public and private vehicles. In gross violation of rules and regulations, CNG stations were growing like mushroom in residential areas while EPA Punjab has no rule to apply to restrict the opening of CNG stations in residential areas.

Densely populated areas in the city like Murree Road, Raja Bazaar, Liaquat Road, Fawwara Chowk, Iqbal Road, Moti Bazaar, Bohar Bazaar, Qila, Ganjmandi, City Saddar Road, Kohati Bazaar, Banni, Jamia Masjid Road, Saidpur Road, Gawalmandi and parts of Satellite Town are exposed to pollution generated by smoke, garbage and poor condition of roads threatening public health.

The report says major urban cities of Punjab suffer from unsafe water contaminated with bacteria and arsenic. Unplanned industrialisation in the urban centres has caused the rivers to become dumping ground for the industrial waste without any check, notes the report.