LAHORE: The Supreme Court (SC) on Friday gave conditional permission to the provincial government to continue the work on the Orange Line Metro Train (OLMT) project in Lahore.
The conditions are as following:
1) All necessary arrangements to ensure monuments stability and lack of damage during execution of the project.
2) Vibration monitoring to be undertaken as a part of the monitoring plan using the crack measure devices throughout the construction period and for an additional period of 10 weeks from the date of commencement of commercial operation of the train or such further time as may be directed by the Director General, Archaeology.
3) Technical experts shall be present at the sites during the construction phase in the vicinity of the antiquities and special premises with all necessary equipment for monitoring vibration levels.
4) An independent and experienced Conservation Engineer shall be appointed to monitor the project. He shall submit monthly reports to the Advisory Committee which shall make further recommendations to the Archaeology Director General, to ensure that the Project is meeting all technical requirements.
5) On completion of the project, the train shall be operated on an experimental basis for at least 2 weeks on the entire length of the route and the vibration levels shall be monitored.
6) The speed of the train shall be reduced while passing near the monuments as recommended by the Directorate General of Archaeology from time to time on the basis of data made available to it.
7) State of the art vibration measuring equipment shall permanently installed at suitable places in and around the antiquities.
8) Special teams consisting of qualified experts will be set up which will periodically inspect all antiquities and special premises to detect any damage or deterioration at the sites.
9) Any damage or deterioration shall be reported to the Archaeology Director-General in writing who shall take remedial steps necessary to ensure the safety of the buildings.
10) Recommendations of the Advisory Committee shall be placed before the Archaeology Directorate General who shall take necessary steps to ensure that the same are complied with in letter and spirit by all concerned agencies.
11) Where excavation is necessary it shall be carried out in a way that it would not affect any structure or foundation of the antiquities or special premises.
12) The executing agency shall install accelerometers, velocity transducers, noise detectors and vibration measuring equipment near the antiquities and special premises.
13) Excavation would be carried out in a way that would not affect any of the exposed or buried structure of the Special Premises.
14) In case of any adverse impact to the antiquities or special premises during excavation, construction or execution, the appellant and all other related agencies shall immediately and forthwith stop and discontinue further work, take all possible actions to protect and conserve the antiquities.
15) A dedicated hotline shall be set up, telephone numbers whereof shall be prominently displayed in public areas around all antiquities and special premises for reporting damage or deterioration observed by members of the public or tourists.
16) In case, any information is received by Archaeology Director-General, the same shall be investigated within 7 days.
17) No building material or equipment shall be stored/stockpiled within the protected area of the monuments.
18) No change shall be made in the alignment of the track which brings any part of it nearer to the monuments.
19) Dust pollution during construction shall be controlled through an extensive sprinkling of water on regular basis.
20) The design of the viaduct and nearby stations in terms of colour and designing shall be in harmony with the setting and appearance of the monuments.
21) The Hydraulic Tank of Shalamar Garden shall be restored, as far as possible, to its original position and the surrounding area will be converted into a green area.
22) Structures on the southern side of the Shalamar Garden shall be camouflaged through the construction of a wall.
23) The decorative motifs of Shalamar Garden would be replicated on the train station near the Shalamar Garden to create harmony with the Garden.
24) The tile mosaic motifs of the Gulabi Bagh Gateway would be replicated on the nearby station of the Gateway to create harmony with the historic Gateway.
25) The area around the Chauburji Gateway would be properly attended and developed into a greenbelt.
26) The decorative motifs of the Chauburji Gateway would be replicated on the nearby station of the Chauburji Gateway to create a harmony with the historic Gateway.
27) The area around the Zaib-un-Nisa’s Tomb would be properly attended and developed.
28) The decorative motifs of the Zaib-un-Nisa’s Tomb would be replicated on the nearby station of the Zaib-un-Nisa’s Tomb to create harmony with the historic.
29) The respondents shall prepare phase-wise plan to control and monitor urban encroachments and the process of creating buffer zone around the Shalamar garden.
30) All future projects which directly, indirectly and incidentally involve antiquities or heritage sites should be widely publicised through print and electronic media at least 6 months prior to proposed date of commencement of the project.
31) For all future projects, licences, approvals and permissions as required by law shall be obtained before work on the project site is commenced.