KARACHI, Oct 30: The Sindh High Court has directed the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra), the city district government of Karachi and the Environmental Protection Agency to look into the installation of private power generators on pavements and regulate small-scale electricity generation by private parties in thickly-populated areas of the city.

The court also directed them to ensure removal of encroachments from footpaths and roadside areas and check environmental pollution in Karachi.

The direction came in an order on a petition moved by Ebrahim Trust against a number of its tenants in its building at 20-West Wharf Road, Karachi, who are involved in illegal installation of electricity generators inside the building, outside it on the adjacent footpath and on its rooftop.

The petitioner sought complete removal of electricity generators of high capacity with other infrastructure, including lose wiring, which have been illegally installed by the respondents. It was contended that installation of generators of up to 150/180 KVAs is patently illegal. On the one hand, it endangers safety of building and its occupants. On the other, it violates the relevant provisions of the Nepra Act, 1997, and other laws that prohibit generation of electricity in such a manner. The law requires prior permission of the authorities concerned and payment of duties and taxes to the government for power generation.

An SHC division bench, comprising Justices Anwar Zaheer Jamali and Syed Zawwar Hussain Jaffery, observed that the impugned power generation violated the environmental law, the Electricity Act, the Nepra Act and other statutes and asked the Nepra, the EPA, the CDGK to ensure compliance with the law and rules.

Allowing the petition, the court also ordered the respondent tenants to remove the unlawfully-installed generators. However, keeping in view the hardship faced due to frequent power breakdowns in the city, the respondents were allowed to operate generators of up to 2.5 KW capacity at their own risk after taking precautionary measures to minimise any threat to life and property and to avoid environment hazard.