Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar on Monday took suo motu notice of water shortage and its lack of supply throughout the country.

On June 7, the Supreme Court will hear cases regarding water shortage in the capital, while the apex court's Karachi and Lahore registries will hold hearings on June 9 and 10, respectively. The chief justice will also hear cases related to water issues in the Peshawar and Quetta registries.

The SC issued notices to top officials from the Capital Administration and Development Division as well as the attorney general, advocate general, and others, and demanded an explanation regarding the water shortage in the capital.

Justice Nisar was heading a three-member SC bench that was hearing a 20-year-old petition filed by Barrister Zafarullah, a senior lawyer from Lahore, concerning the Kalabagh dam. He had argued that 20 per cent of Pakistan's growth rate depended on water supply, yet no dam had been built in the country for the past 48 years.

The CJ replied that water shortage is now the "top priority" of the court and took a suo motu notice of the matter. Justice Sardar Tariq Masood regretted that none of the political parties had taken the water issue seriously enough to include it in their manifestos.

Expressing concern over the dam built on the Kishanganga River by India as part of its Kishanganga hydropower plant project, the chief justice said that the Neelum River, which is a tributary of the Indian river, has dried up.

"What have we done for our children if we can't even provide them water?" he remarked.

Opinion

Editorial

On the brink
Updated 25 Sep, 2023

On the brink

Everyone and every sector has to rise together, in sync, if this country is to put itself on a progressive trajectory.
Sanaullah’s remarks
25 Sep, 2023

Sanaullah’s remarks

THE hypocrisy of our democratic leadership is a gift that keeps giving. Last week, the president of the PML-N in...
Print in digital age
25 Sep, 2023

Print in digital age

THERE is a shocking amount of disinformation out there in the Information Age. While electronic and social media ...
World Cup squad
24 Sep, 2023

World Cup squad

THE stress was on continuity — trusting and backing players who had been with the team — as Pakistan’s squad...
Mirwaiz freed
Updated 24 Sep, 2023

Mirwaiz freed

It is safe to assume that the release of Mirwaiz Umar Farooq could not have been possible without the green light from New Delhi.
Beyond lip service
24 Sep, 2023

Beyond lip service

UN SECRETARY GENERAL António Guterres did not mince words at the recently held Climate Ambition Summit: “Humanity...