Karachi: The General Secretary of Citizens for Environment has submitted a plea against a high-rise construction in the city for allegedly violating the provincial environmental laws in effect, a news source reported. The secretary has issued the complaint against the provision of a No-Objection Certificate (NOC) to the said multi-storey mixed-use project – located in Karachi Development Authority (KDA)’s Scheme 33.
A three-member tribunal, headed by its Chairman Justice (retired) Sadiq Hussain Bhatti, admitted the plea for hearing. The tribunal also issued a notice to the complainant to appear before the bench on February 11 for recording his statement under Section 200 of the Criminal Procedure Code.
Through his counsel, the complainant had submitted a plea against the former SEPA Director General (DG) for granting an Initial Environmental Examination (IEE) approval to the project. The plea also states that the DG granted the IEE approval without a public hearing and the consultation of the department concerned.
The counsel told the tribunal that this action contradicted the provisions of the Sindh Environmental Protection Act 2014. The provision allows only a construction on a land measuring less than 2,000 square yards an IEE approval. On the other hand, the high-rise in question was built on land measuring 9,600 square yards. For this, the project required an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) approval – a procedure not followed by the defendants.
The complainant has also stated that the
granted IEE approval was currently inaccessible to the public. He added that
this act was in violation of the Article 19-A of the Constitution and the Right
to Information Act. In this regard, he had moved an application previously, but
received no response, he said.
