KARACHI, May 11: Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has strongly condemned dumping of chemical waste at an open place in Site area and demanded an independent inquiry into the incidents of death and injuries in this regard.

Upon receiving reports that two children had died and more than 20 people had suffered injuries in such incidents, a fact-finding team of the Commission visited the specified place and found chemical waste dumped at an open plot, measuring some two acres, close to the Sarhad Mohalla, UC 8 in Baldia Town.Most of the victims appeared to be the residents of Sarhad Mohalla and UC 8 and other localities of UC-8, whereas the others came from Faqir Colony, Orangi Town, Abidabad, UC-1 and Baldia Town and were aged less than 15 years. For children of the neighbourhood, the plot had been serving as a playground for long. As the factories functioning nearby started dumping chemical waste on the plot, the soil turned toxic affecting the children coming in contact with the chemical waste.The HRCP team also found that the waste was still dangerous and not guarded by any policemen or security personnel.

It noted that factory owners had started dumping mud on the chemical waste to bury evidences.

An eight-year-old boy, Iftikhar, and a 10-year-old boy, Siddique, expired after getting affected by the chemicals while about 20 people, Naveed son of Ali Zaman, 9, Sheraz son of Ali Sarwar, 9, Shahid son of Zahir, 14, Asad son of Jahan Zada, 13, Naveed Hassan son of Khawas Gul, 14, Akbar Zada son of Sherien, 20, Wahid Zada son of Sherien, 26, Sakhi Akbar, 60, Hazrat Ali son of Alam Khan, 12, Mohammad Saddiq son of Sahib Zada, 9, Sirbaz Khan son of Mustajib Khan, 12, Hazrat Shah son of Gul Naseer, 15, Aslam Khan son of Ghulam Jani, 36, Noor Islam son of Abdul Salam, 20, Ali Hassan son of Zaeef Omar, Sharif and others suffered injuries.

The HRCP demanded immediate arrest of those responsible for the deaths and the harm caused to so many people in the incidents.—PPI