The Punjab Environment Protection Department (EPD) on Tuesday issued an ultimatum to the Defence Housing Authority (DHA) on charges of discharging untreated waste and toxic water into the Charrar Drain, linking to Hudiara Drain, which ends at River Ravi.
The EPD also issued notice to Aashiana Housing Society, brainchild of the Punjab CM, Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), Sui Housing Society, State Life Housing Society, several private housing societies of Aziz Bhatti Town and Nishtar Town and industrial units for polluting the 19 kilometre Charrar Drain, which originates from Barki Road, Bao Wala Pind, near the airport and ends in Hudiara Drain, Dullu Khurd, 23 kilometres Ferozpur Road.
Charrar Drain, located in south-eastern Lahore, is basically a storm water channel and but has turned into a sewage-cum-industrial drain with a designed capacity of around 7200 cusecs. The notification, issued under section 16, ordered all societies, industrial units and departments to install waste treatment plants at the earliest before releasing water in Charrar Drain, otherwise legal notices would be issued against them and cases referred to the environmental tribunal,” EPD Deputy Director EIA Naseem Hassanur Rehman Shah told Pakistan Today.
He clarified that issuance of the notification was part of EPD’s plan to prevent Hudiara Drain from waste water pollution and Charrar Drain, attached to Hudiara Drain, had been selected in the first phase. EPD DG Dr Shagufta Shah Jahan informed a meeting held to review the status of Hudiara and Charrar drains that the EPD had issued 58 Environmental Protection Orders to societies connected to Charrar Drain. The meeting chaired by Punjab Environment Secretary Sajjad Saleem Hotian was also attended by officials of WASA, Irrigation and LCCI, DHA and other departments.
The meeting observed that the Hudiara Drain, which was a natural storm water channel, originated from Batala in Gurdaspur, India, and entered into Pakistan at Village Laloo. “After flowing for nearly 55 kilometres inside Pakistan, it joins the River Ravi while the Charrar Drain connects it in the middle. All along its route in India and Pakistan, wastewater, sewage and industrial pollutants are discharged into the drain without any proper prior treatment. As a result, organic wastes and toxic chemicals have badly affected aquatic life both in this drain and in the River Ravi.”
The meeting observed that around 103 industrial units were connected to Charrar Drain and only six had treatment plants and 90 percent of the industries were textile units. EPD official Shahid Hussain said that industrial units having treatment plants include Combined Fabric Limited, Delta Garments Limited, Musterhaft Private Limitdd, Manikan Textile (ETP under construction), Zainal Textile Mills, presently not in operation and Padana Textile Mills, presently not in operation. Out of the 103 industrial units, 30 had been closed for not installing waste treatment plants, he added.
During the meeting, environment secretary Sajjad Saleem Hotiana gave directions to all representatives and stakeholders that the drain needed pavement. He said that de-silting, dumping of solid waste along the drain should be banned and the original status of the drain ie storm water channel be restored.
