LAHORE, Feb 21: Water and Sanitation Agency deputy managing director Abdul Rehman Siddiqi on Tuesday submitted before the Punjab Environment Tribunal that the Lahore Branch Canal was being polluted at 40 points between Jallo and Mohlanwal by discharge of sewage, waste water and industrial effluent.
Appearing before the tribunal comprising Syed Zamir Husain Shah and Mansoor Akbar Kaukab in response to a complaint about pollution of the canal filed by the Eco Watch Trust, he submitted that water parks were discharging their waste water in the canal at six points between Harbanspura and Jallo, which was not harmful.
Sewage from a number of housing colonies was being discharged into the canal at 21 points between Harbanspura and Fetehgarh, which caused 90 per cent pollution to the canal. The irrigation workshops were discharging their waste water in the canal at three points in Mughalpura and sewage was being disposed of in it at five points in Dharampura.
Harmful industrial effluent was being discharged in the canal at five points between Thokar Niaz Beg and Mohlanwal.
He said Wasa had decided to lay sewerage lines on both sides of the canal by June 2007 at a cost of Rs98 million to prevent the discharge of harmful sewage and industrial effluent in it. The sewage from the new sewerage lines would be discharged in the Sukh Nehr for disposal in the Ravi.
The tribunal directed the Wasa official to submit the details of the plan before it at the next date of hearing of the case.
Additional Secretary Environment Dr Sher Afgan submitted that the Punjab chief secretary had ordered a meeting of the Lahore Development Authority director-general, the Wasa managing director, irrigation and environment secretaries for the formulation of a policy for checking pollution of the Lahore Branch Canal.
The tribunal directed him to invite the district coordination officer to the meeting and submit the policy formulated at the meeting before it at the next date of hearing of the case in March.
A Parks and Horticulture Authority representative submitted that the irrigation department’s allegation of throwing of rotten leaves from gardens and parks in the canal was unfounded because the same were being used for the preparation of manure.
District Officer (Human Resource Management) Mrs Umatul Quddus submitted that she dealt with only postings and transfers of the city district government officials.
Imran Ahmad Bhatti and Jehanzeb Nazir Malik appeared on behalf of the petitioner.
SECURITY: Wasa has released the security of a contractor on the intervention of Punjab ombudsman Abdur Rashid Khan.
The contractor submitted in his complaint that he repaired the damaged manholes at Sabzazar Housing Scheme for Wasa. The agency had cleared his bill but withheld the security on the grounds that the audit department had objected to his failure to deposit the old material with it.
The Wasa deputy-director finance contended that the security was not being released because an audit para required the complainant to pay Rs128,540 as the cost of old material.
The ombdusman directed the agency to release the security because the condition of deposit of old material had not been mentioned in the terms of contract.