ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Mian Saqib Nisar on Thursday said that the mineral water companies have dried up Lahore and Sheikhupura.
A two-member bench of the Supreme Court headed by CJP Nisar heard a suo motu case pertaining to the alleged exploitation of water resources by mineral water companies operating in the country.
As the hearing went underway, the chief justice remarked, “No company selling drinking water is paying for underground water. Billions of gallons of water were taken and even hundreds of thousands were not paid for it.”
“Meanwhile, most mineral water companies are selling sub-standard water,” he added.
Presenting his arguments on behalf of a mineral water company, senior lawyer Aitzaz Ahsan said that “money is spent on extracting underground water, purifying it and marketing it”.
Responding to him, Justice Nisar said, “Lets shutdown your turbine and ask the company to give tap water.”
Following this, Ahsan read a report regarding water purification and was further question by the CJP “whether he was reading the Indus saga”.
“You had only told us about how much you are paying,” Justice Nisar said, adding that “mineral water companies have dried up underground water reserves and taps have been running dry”.
“Shutdown the industry which is making the country barren,” he asserted.
The chief justice urged the nation to drink tap water and said, “People waste water and leave half-full bottles. In villages, people still drink tap water but residents of cities have an attitude problem and don’t drink it.”
Furthermore, the chief justice stated, “If these companies want to continue operations then they should pay Re 1/litre to the government.”
However, Ahsan said, “We can give up to Rs0.5/litre.” To this, Justice Nisar remarked, “You buy water for Re 1 and sell it for Rs52.”
“The level of underground water has reached 400 feet in Lahore and mineral water companies have dried up the provincial capital and Sheikhupura,” he added.
Requesting the nation once again to not drink bottled water, Justice Nisar said, “Stop using the water of those who have made our land barren and don’t even pay.”
