ISLAMABAD: The Metropolitan Corporation Islamabad (MCI) on Thursday failed to satisfy a parliamentary body about actions taken to control pollution generated from restaurants in Margalla Hills National Park.

While Monal Restaurant disposes of its solid waste daily, La Montana does not, said MCI’s director environment Tahir Hassan.

“MCI is responsible for these two restaurants and has issued notices to them to find solutions to sewage they discharge into the protected national park,” the official told the National Assembly Standing Committee on Climate Change.

The committee was informed by an official of the Islamabad Wildlife Management Board that sewage from these restaurants continued to pollute Margalla Hills National Park, threatening the entire ecosystem.

Pollution in the national park is a violation of Islamabad, Wildlife Protection, Preservation, Conservation and Management Ordinance 1979.

MCI official says notices have been issued to restaurants to properly dispose of sewage

However, Mr Hassan told the members that Monal Restaurant had been directed to construct a septic tank to control water pollution.

But the lawmakers were pessimistic if building just a septic tank was a sufficient measure to control sewage discharge into the national park.

Chairperson of the committee MNA Munaza Hassan of the PTI directed that the septic tank should be built according to standards specified by Pakistan Environment Protection Agency (Pak-EPA).

However, an official from Pak-EPA complained to the committee that the management of the two restaurants was uncooperative.

State Minister for Climate Change Zartaj Gul seconded Pak-EPA and urged the chairperson to look into it personally.

The committee sought details of agreements with all kiosks and restaurants from the MCI.

MNA Munaza Hassan said plots were allotted to restaurants and kiosks on verbal settlements. Members were also inquisitive about the real owners of the land where Monal and La Montana restaurants were built.

While MCI committed to provide the members with copies of the agreements, Mr Hassan explained that Monal and La Montana, the two biggest establishments in Margalla Hills National Park, were constructed on MCI land.

In the previous meeting of the committee, the Capital Development Authority (CDA) had told members that after a fresh survey it was established that the two restaurants were located on military grasslands.

“That is not so. The 6,500 square kilometres of military grasslands begin from the point known as Mochi Mor past the two restaurants,” Mr Hassan told the members.

He also informed them that leases of kiosks such as Jungle Spot and Wild Mild past Islamabad Zoo on the road to Daman-i-Koh had been cancelled.

The MCI is helpless because of the stay orders obtained by owners of these establishments, he added.“Wild Mild has obtained stay orders from four civil courts against cancellation of its lease,” the official said.

Published in Dawn, January 24th, 2020