LAHORE: The Lahore High Court has been asked through a writ petition to issue directions to the Punjab government to take action against the authorities concerned for not implementing recommendations given by a 2010 Flood Inquiry Commission to avoid floods and destruction.

Advocate Pir Muhammad Ali Gilani, chairman of the Human Safety Commission of Pakistan, in his petition stated that this year floods were damaging public property, livestock, agriculture and health of people of Punjab just like they had previously.

He said as per Punjab Flood Relief statistics, rains and flooding had killed 17 people in the province, while 533 were hospitalised, 2,939 had skin infections, 1,686 severe fever, 619,534 animals displaced and agricultural land of 2,527 villages destroyed.

He said flood victims were in trouble and homeless once again, but the government was only convening meetings like it does every year without doing anything practical.

He pointed out that following the 2010 heavy floods in Punjab, the government had ordered a judicial inquiry.

The Flood Inquiry Commission headed by Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah had comprehensively described causes of breaches and given rational recommendations to stop destruction caused by floods in the future, but unfortunately the government paid no attention to them.

Advocate Gilani said the government must have found a solution to stop floods on the basis of the inquiry and findings of the commission.

He asked the court to take action against the authorities concerned for not implementing the commission’s report.

Published in Dawn, August 1st, 2015

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